Governor Ahmed Aliyu of Sokoto State has flagged off the 2026 Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention (SMC) campaign, reaffirming his administration’s commitment to reducing malaria-related illnesses and deaths among children.
The flag-off ceremony, held on Wednesday in Wamakko Local Government Area, marked the commencement of the annual campaign aimed at protecting children aged three to 59 months from malaria during the peak rainy season.
Aliyu described malaria as a major public health concern, particularly during the rainy season when mosquito breeding increases, stressing that the disease continues to pose a serious threat to the lives of children.
He commended the Sokoto State Ministry of Health, the State Malaria Elimination Agency, the National Malaria Elimination Programme, Malaria Consortium, and other development partners for sustaining the annual intervention.
The governor also acknowledged the contributions of traditional and religious leaders, local government chairmen, and community drug distributors for ensuring the drugs reach targeted children across the state.
“I appreciate the commitment of all our partners and the dedication of our mass drug distributors who go from house to house to administer these life-saving medicines to our children,” he said.
Aliyu noted that Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention has remained one of the most effective strategies for preventing malaria among children under five.
“By administering monthly doses of antimalarial medicines to children between the ages of three and 59 months during the rainy season, we can reduce malaria cases by up to 75 per cent. This means fewer hospital admissions, lower healthcare costs and, most importantly, more lives saved,” he said.
The governor also commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for supporting programmes aimed at reducing the burden of malaria and strengthening healthcare delivery across the country.
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In his remarks, the Commissioner for Health, Dr. Faruk Umar Wurno, said the health sector occupies a prominent place in Governor Aliyu’s Nine-Point SMART Agenda, adding that the administration has made remarkable progress in improving healthcare services.
“Our health infrastructure has improved significantly, our workforce has been strengthened, and the quality of healthcare services across primary, secondary and tertiary facilities has continued to improve.
These achievements are already reflecting positively on the state’s health indices,” Wurno said.
He assured the governor that the ministry and its agencies would remain committed to implementing policies and programmes that would further improve health outcomes across Sokoto State.
Representing the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III, the District Head of Wamakko, Alhaji Ahmed Barade, praised the governor’s commitment to strengthening healthcare delivery and pledged the continued support of the traditional institution.
“The traditional institution will continue to mobilise our people to embrace government health programmes, particularly this malaria prevention campaign, to safeguard the lives of our children,” he said.
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