Plateau State has recorded a significant decline in malaria prevalence from 18.8 per cent in 2021 to 2.8 per cent in 2025.
Th First Lady of the state, Barr. Helen Mutfwang, disclosed this on Tuesday as the state government flagged off the 2026 Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention (SMC) campaign targeting more than one million children.
The campaign, launched at the Crispan Event Center in Jos, is aimed at providing preventive malaria medication to eligible children during the peak malaria transmission season in a bid to further reduce the disease burden across the state.
Addressing stakeholders at the event, Mrs. Mutfwang described the flag-off of the SMC campaign as another major step towards protecting children from malaria and improving public health outcomes in Plateau State.
She expressed delight over the progress recorded in malaria control, revealing that malaria prevalence in the state had dropped from 18.8 per cent in 2021 to 2.8 per cent in 2025 through the combined efforts of government, healthcare workers, communities and development partners.
“This achievement demonstrates that with strong leadership, effective partnerships, and community participation, malaria can be defeated,” she said.
The First Lady urged parents and caregivers to ensure that all eligible children receive the free SMC medicines during every cycle of the campaign.
Mrs. Mutfwang, who was also crowned the 2026 Ambassador of the Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention campaign, commended Governor Caleb Mutfwang, Malaria Consortium, healthcare workers and community volunteers for their contributions to the fight against malaria before officially flagging off the exercise.
Earlier, the Commissioner for Health, Dr. Nicholas Ba’amlong, commended the First Lady for her commitment to the programme and her role in advocating for improved healthcare services for women and children across the state.
He also praised the State Malaria Elimination Programme, Malaria Consortium, development partners and frontline health workers for sustaining malaria prevention interventions that have contributed to reducing cases across Plateau State.
Ba’amlong further appreciated Governor Caleb Mutfwang for prioritising the health sector and providing support for healthcare programmes in the state.
He called on community leaders, stakeholders and wives of local government chairmen to support the campaign and ensure its success at the grassroots level.
Speaking on the implementation of the programme, the Programme Manager of the Plateau State Malaria Elimination Programme, Nurse Ndak Kizito Zuhumnan, disclosed that community drug distributors, health workers and supervisors would commence house-to-house visits from June to October to administer preventive malaria medicines to children aged three to 59 months across the state.
He said the intervention is designed to protect children from malaria during the peak transmission season and reduce illness and deaths associated with the disease.
“The aim of this medication is to prevent children from coming down with malaria. We want to reach over one million children, and we urge parents and guardians to make every eligible child available for this free and safe intervention,” Zuhumnan stated.
He attributed the remarkable progress recorded in malaria control to the sustained implementation of the SMC programme and collaboration among government agencies, health workers, development partners, community leaders and the media.
In a goodwill message delivered on behalf of the West and Central Africa Programme Director of Malaria Consortium, Dr. Maxwell Kolawole, Dr. Mbwas Mashor commended the Plateau State Government and its partners for their commitment to malaria control efforts.
He noted that despite Nigeria’s high malaria burden, Plateau State had achieved significant progress in reducing malaria prevalence through sustained interventions and effective partnerships.
Mashor disclosed that the 2026 SMC campaign would target over one million eligible children across the state and reaffirmed Malaria Consortium’s commitment to supporting malaria elimination efforts.
He called for stronger government ownership, sustained funding and continued collaboration to consolidate the gains already recorded.
Also speaking, Chairman of the Association of Primary Healthcare, Chundung Maina, said Plateau State was increasingly gaining national recognition for improvements in healthcare delivery driven by data-based planning and implementation.
According to her, the progress recorded in the state reflects stronger political commitment, improved investment and effective use of evidence in public health decision-making.
She stressed the need for sustained commitment and adequate financing to consolidate existing gains and expand access to quality healthcare services across the state.
