By Chibuike Nwabuko
Abuja (Sundiata Post) — The Federal Government, on Saturday, confirmed the outbreak of the Cerebrospinal Meningitis (CSM) in 90 local government areas (LGAs) in sixteen (16) states of the federation.
The affected states are: Zamfara, Katsina, Sokoto, Kebbi, Niger, Nassarawa, Jigawa, FCT, Gombe, Taraba, Yobe, Kano, Osun, Cross Rivers, Lagos and Plateau.
Consequently, death tolls from the epidemic currently stands at 328 deaths, with 2,524 people now affected by the deadly disease.
A public advisory issued by the Federal Ministry of Health on Saturday stated that, “So far, a total 131 samples have been confirmed in the laboratory, out of which a majority are Neisseria Meningitides type C., as the current outbreak started in Zamfara State last November”.
Isaac Adewole, the Minister of Health in the Public Advisory assured Nigerians that the Federal Government is working round the clock with various international agencies to forestall the threat posed by the epidemic.
“We have started working with all the affected states in specific areas of collaboration on massive awareness and sensitisation, laboratory investigation and analysis, proper documentation and disease surveillance techniques through the National Centre for Disease Control and National Primary Health Care Development Authority (NPHCDA), who have been of tremendous support since the outbreak.
“We are in constant discussion with World Health Organisation (WHO), UNICEF, E-health Africa and other international health agencies for supplies of vaccines and injections,” Adewole said.
He gave further insight on government’s efforts.
“Through our initiatives, we have secured 500,000 doses of the meningococcal vaccines from WHO, which will be used in Zamfara and Katsina states with additional 800,000 units from the British government,” he said.
Adewole disclosed that there will be a meeting with the International Review Group of the World Health Organisation (WHO) where request for additional vaccines shall be approved by next Tuesday.
He added that it is as part of the practical and medically certified efforts to stem the ugly incidence.
The minister also noted that the Federal Government is equally advocating for prompt diagnosis and have issued directive to all federal medical facilities and PHCs to treat all cases of meningitis free of charge.
He also directed that all Nigerians, especially residents of Katsina, Kano, Kebbi, Sokoto, Niger, Zamfara and Jigawa states seek early attention when discomforted with symptoms of Cerebro Spinal Meningitis (CSM), and avoid clogging together in unventilated and over-crowded rooms.
It would be noted that Nigeria is currently experiencing an outbreak of Cerebrospinal Meningitis (CSM) that has spread across the country and mostly affecting states in the upper parts of the country, which fall within the African Meningitis Belt.
Other countries that are facing similar outbreaks at the moment include our West-African neighbours like Niger, Chad, Cameroun, Togo, and Burkina Faso.
The larger African Meningitis Belt consists of 26 countries that stretch from Senegal, Gambia and Guinea Bissau in the west coast to eastern countries of Eritrea and Ethiopia
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