Stakeholders in the fight against malaria have inaugurated a door-to-door prevention campaign for children under the age of five in the FCT.

The campaign will target no fewer than one million children with lifesaving antimalarial medicines during the peak transmission season.

Adedolapo Fasawe, mandate secretary, Health Services and Environment Secretariat (HSES), stated this during the inauguration of the 2026 Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention (SMC) campaign on Monday at Durumi, Abuja.

The campaign was organised by the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), HSES, the FCT Malaria Elimination Programme, and Malaria Consortium, among others.

Ms Fasawe said that the intervention would cover all six area councils of the FCT and target 1.02 million eligible children aged between three and 59 months.

According to her, trained community drug distributors will move from house to house to administer the antimalarial medicines free of charge, ensuring that no eligible child is missed during the exercise.

She said the first cycle of the campaign would commence on Thursday and run monthly for five cycles until October.

“Malaria remains one of the leading causes of illness and death worldwide, although it is both preventable and treatable.

“Nigeria accounts for approximately 27 per cent of global malaria cases and about 30 per cent of global malaria deaths, with most of the deaths occurring among children under five years.

“During the rainy season, when malaria transmission peaks, thousands of young lives are lost to this preventable disease,” she said.

She explained that the programme, which commenced in the FCT in 2022, had contributed significantly to reducing malaria prevalence among children.

Ms Fasawe said the territory recorded a 58 per cent reduction in malaria prevalence, dropping from 18.8 per cent in 2021 to 7.9 per cent in 2025.

She attributed the reduction to collaborative efforts by development partners, such as the Malaria Consortium, in implementing malaria control interventions.

She, therefore, urged parents and caregivers to ensure that eligible children complete the full three-day antimalarial treatment every month throughout the five-month campaign.

“The drugs are safe, free and provide protection during the peak malaria transmission season. This intervention will reduce hospital visits, save family resources and, most importantly, save lives,” she said.

She further encouraged residents to enrol in the FCT Health Insurance Scheme to reduce out-of-pocket spending on malaria and other health conditions.

Earlier, Jenifer Chukwumerije, technical specialist, philanthropic funding SMC, Malaria Consortium, while noting the public health threats posed by malaria, said Nigeria recorded 68.47 million malaria cases in 2024.

She said the figure represented 24.3 per cent of the global malaria burden while accounting for 38.6 per cent of malaria deaths among children under five.

She emphasised that the SMC remains one of the most effective interventions in reducing malaria-related illnesses and deaths among children, adding that the organisation, in collaboration with national malaria programmes, reached 23.52 million children in 2025 across several countries, including Nigeria.

She commended the FCT Administration for its commitment to malaria control and called for sustained government ownership and funding to ensure the programme’s long-term sustainability.

“Together, we can ensure that every eligible child in the FCT is protected from malaria and move closer to our shared vision of a malaria-free Nigeria,” she said.

Ogwuche Wilson, desk officer at the FCT World Health Organisation (WHO), reiterated the organisation’s commitment to supporting Nigeria in reducing the malaria burden.

The chief of the Durumi community, Tanko Anyidadubo, expressed gratitude for the intervention, reaffirming the community’s commitment to ensuring that every eligible child receives the medication in the drive toward a malaria-free Nigeria.

(NAN)