Oke Epia
15 February 2004
Lagos — The Lagos State government has expended over N50 million to fight against the scourge of malaria in the state through the Eko-Free Malaria Treatment Programme.
This was made known by Governor Bola Tinubu at the recent launch of Insecticides Treated Nets (ITNs) under the auspices of the British Department for International Development (DFID) in conjunction with Futures Group, in Lagos.
The governor also disclosed that as part of plans to revitalize primary healthcare in the state, the government was introducing free malaria treatment at the local government level and free chemoprophylactic treatment during ante-natal care at all maternity units throughout the state.
Tinubu who was represented at the occasion by the state Commissioner for Health, Dr. Leke Pitan, also lauded the DFID/Futures efforts in the propagation of ITNs, describing their intervention as timely.
He said also that the launch "will greatly boost our new policy of giving free ITHs to mothers who can show proof of complete immunisation schedules of their children."
The governor also used the opportunity of the launch to express the profound gratitude of the state government to the British High Commission "for sponsoring this laudable programme in Lagos State." He therefore called on various stakeholders "to help create the necessary awareness on the use of ITNs by the teeming residents of Lagos state and help to boost the demand for the nets."
He also stated that the state is set to ensure "that the morbidity and mortality from malaria is halved by the year 2010."
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2004 This Day. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
