The Kano State government is set to distribute about 7.7 million insecticide-treated nets (ITN) in efforts to reduce malaria infections, particularly among mothers and children.

The Kano State Commissioner for Health, Abubakar Labaran, disclosed this on Friday at a news conference to commemorate the 2025 World Malaria Day in Kano.

The theme for 2025 World Malaria Day is: “Malaria Ends With Us: Reinvest, Reimagine, Reignite.”

Mr Labaran said all hands must be on deck to ensure a hitch-free distribution, noting that the involvement and total commitment of everybody were required in order to get improved results.

He said the event would serve as an avenue to create awareness about malaria and other related diseases.

According to the commissioner, the focus is to ensure the state records a zero rate of malaria and other related diseases.

“The state government has lined out plans to administer malaria prevention drugs to over 3.8 million children below the age of five years from July to October.

“At the end of the exercise, we expect that over 75 per cent of malaria cases, including severe malaria incidents, would have been taken care of when complete doses are administered.

“The recent Nigeria Malaria Indicator Survey (NMIS 2021) showed case a decrease in malaria burden from 32.4 per cent to 26 per cent in Kano compared with the previous survey (NMIS 2015) data of 27 per cent to 32.4 per cent,” he said.

The commissioner said the fight against malaria required stronger collaboration and partnership by all stakeholders, including the government, partners, the private sector, individuals and communities.

He urged the general public to clean their environment and clear their drains to get rid of stagnant water in gutters and old tyres, which he said were breeding sites for mosquitoes.

The commissioner said the state needed to raise more awareness of using insecticidal-treated nets in the various communities, noting that the sensitisation should not end with acquiring the net alone.

He said the utilisation of the net was paramount to the state.

“This is because that is when it can have an impact on malaria prevention and reduce the incidence of malaria in the state,” he said.

(NAN)