By: Adelowo Oladipo, Minna
The Niger State Government has launched a comprehensive malaria intervention valued at over N2.5 billion and commenced the distribution of 1,000 hospital beds, out of the 2,000 procured alongside essential medicines, medical consumables and mobility aids, as part of efforts to strengthen healthcare delivery across the state.
This is contained in a statement issued by the Public Relations Officer Niger State Ministry Of Health, Jibrin Usman Kodo and made available to Journalists on Friday in Minna
The statement added that the Deputy Governor of Niger State, His Excellency Comrade Yakubu Garba, disclosed this on Thursday (yesterday) at the official launch and distribution of malaria commodities, hospital beds and wheelchairs held at the Niger State Drugs and Hospital Consumables Management Agency (NSDHCMA) in Minna.
Comrade Garba described the intervention as a major component of the health agenda of the administration of Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago under the New Niger Agenda, which places a strong emphasis on expanding access to quality, affordable and responsive healthcare for residents of the state.
According to the Deputy Governor, the intervention is projected to benefit an estimated 6.9 million residents, with nearly four million people already reached during the initial phase of the distribution.
He stressed the importance of ensuring timely, transparent and equitable distribution of the commodities to health facilities across the state, noting that the intervention would contribute significantly to reducing the burden of malaria and preventing avoidable deaths.
The Deputy Governor commended the Niger State Ministry of Health, NSDHCMA, development partners and other relevant government agencies for their continued collaboration, assuring stakeholders that the state government would sustain its counterpart funding and continue to provide an enabling environment for the effective implementation of health interventions.
In his welcome address, the Executive Director of NSDHCMA, Pharmacist Umar Ndagi, reaffirmed the agency’s commitment to ensuring uninterrupted availability of essential medicines and medical supplies in public health facilities across the state.
Pharmacist Ndagi disclosed that the distribution of 1,000 hospital beds had commenced, while another 1,000 beds were expected to be delivered shortly.
He further revealed that, in collaboration with the Malaria Consortium, the agency had commenced the distribution of prophylactic antimalarial medicines across all 25 Local Government Areas of Niger State.
According to him, NSDHCMA currently supplies approximately 90 per cent of medicines and medical consumables utilised across the state’s public healthcare system, serving 23 general hospitals, more than 400 primary healthcare centres and the IBB Specialist Hospital.
Also speaking, the State Representative of the Malaria Consortium, Pharmacist Aminu Aliyu, commended the Niger State Government for creating a conducive environment for the implementation of health interventions, providing timely counterpart funding and strengthening coordination among stakeholders.
He noted that the Malaria Consortium, in collaboration with the National Malaria Elimination Programme and other partners, had supplied millions of insecticide-treated nets, diagnostic kits and antimalarial commodities to support malaria prevention and control efforts across the state.
The event was attended by the Honourable Commissioner for Health; Commissioners for Information and Orientation, Women Affairs and Social Development, and Humanitarian and Disaster Management; the State Head of Service; Deputy Chief of Staff to the Deputy Governor; Permanent Secretaries; senior government officials and other stakeholders in the health sector.
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