BY CHIKA OKEKE, Abuja
Registrar of nvironmental Health Officers Registration Council of Nigeria (EHORECON) Dr. Baba Yakubu Mohammed during the symbolic source site management intervention for Mosquito control at UTC Market, Area 10 Abuja yesterday. PHOTO BY CHIKA OKEKE
As part of activities to commemorate the 2022 World Mosquito Day, Environmental Health Officers Registration Council of Nigeria (EHORECON) in partnership with Pest Control Association of Nigeria (PECAN) have marshaled plans to end the death of over 300, 000 Nigerians caused by malaria annually.
This is even as Environmental Health Officers (EHO's) embarked on road walk from Area 3 to UTC Market, Area 10m Garki Abuja, declaring war against mosquitoes and malaria.
They carried placards with inscriptions such as "Source Site Management, Don't Keep Stagnant Waters'; 'Mosquitoes Kill, Kill Mosquitoes'; 'Prevention Is Better Than Cure, Get Rid Of Mosquitoes'; 'Vector Control Eliminate The Vector'; 'Prevention Not Only Treatment. Get The Professionals, PECAN Is Here', and among others.
The 20th August was designated annually as World Mosquito Day in honour of British Dr. Sir Ronald Ross, who discovered that female mosquitoes transmitted malaria between humans in 1897.
Theme of this year’s event, 'Harness Innovation To Reduce The Malaria Disease Burden And Save Lives', underscored the need for inter-agency collaboration in order to cripple the crisis posed by mosquitoes across the 36 States and Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Registrar of EHORECON, Dr. Baba Yakubu Mohammed flagged off a sensitisation programme in some selected markets on how to eliminate malaria with the use of modern environmental health equipment in Abuja yesterday.
He said that mosquitoes transmitted diseases and according to World Health Organisation (WHO), about 51 million Nigerians suffer from the burden of malaria, which accounts for huge number of mortality rate and morbidity in the country.
The registrar stated that the event was in fulfillment of President Muhammadu Buhari's directive that the tripartite ministries such as Environment, Health and Agriculture should collaborate in implementing the 'One Health Concept'.
Buhari had last week inaugurated the Nigeria End Malaria Council (NEMC), with a mandate to raise funds and sustain the progress made so far by the federal government in ending malaria.
The EHORECON boss expressed its readiness to deploy expertise, skills and new technology to actualise the elimination of malaria, expected to cost Nigeria N2 trillion by 2025.
He was optimistic that the reduction of malaria would improve Nigeria's economy.
Chairman of Pest Control Association of Nigeria (PECAN) Abuja Chapter, PCO Terungwa Abari (3rd left) during the sensitisation programme at UTC Market, Area 10 Abuja, alongside Environmental Health Officers (EHO's) yesterday. PHOTO BY CHIKA OKEKE
On his part, the Chairman of PECAN, Abuja Chapter, PCO Terungwa Abari stated that environmentalists settled for Pyrethroids chemicals since its safe for the environment and human health, adding that 'the label is the law '.
He pleaded with traders and shoppers to participate in the war against malaria by cleaning the drainages and avoid keeping stagnant waters that would breed mosquitoes.
Abari described mosquitoes as the number one terrorist against mankind, adding that defeating malaria is achievable if Nigerians join forces to maintain clean and healthy environment.
He appreciated EHORECON for providing the platform to end the scourge of malaria, saying that mosquitoes had killed over 52 billion people across the world since the inception of mankind 200, 000 years ago.
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