ABIA TO TACKLE MALARIA FROM MOSQUITO BREEDING SOURCES

The Abia State Government has announced plans to tackle malaria by targeting mosquito breeding sites across the state.

The state Ministry of Health, in collaboration with the National Malaria Elimination Programme, will begin larvae source management activities before the end of September 2026.

The intervention will initially focus on Isuikwuato and Aba South Local Government Areas, where available data showed significant mosquito larvae breeding activities.

The Commissioner for Information, Prince Okey Kanu, disclosed this on Monday while briefing journalists at the Government House, Umuahia, on the outcome of the State Executive Council meeting chaired by Governor Alex Otti.

Kanu said the government was working with relevant stakeholders across the 17 local government areas ahead of the statewide distribution of insecticide-treated mosquito nets.

He said the distribution would take place within the first and second weeks of October 2026, adding that the mosquito nets had already started arriving in the state.

The commissioner also disclosed that the Nchedo Sexual Assault Referral Centre had recently recorded seven cases of gender-based violence and sexual and gender-based violence.

According to him, the cases comprised six incidents of sexual violence and one case of domestic violence.

He said five of the survivors were minors aged between 10 and 14 years, while the other two were adult women aged between 25 and 40 years.

The reported cases involved alleged defilement, rape and domestic violence against a pregnant woman.

Kanu said the referral centre provided medical and other support services to the survivors, including medical intervention and surgery for a 10-year-old survivor who suffered severe vaginal bleeding.

He added that the survivor had been documented for appropriate protection, investigation, referral and legal processes.

Kanu assured that the state government remained committed to ensuring that perpetrators of gender-based violence were brought to justice.

On healthcare accreditation, the commissioner said the Ministry of Health had hosted the Optometrists and Opticians Registration Council of Nigeria for an accreditation visit.

He added that the National Board for Technical Education also visited the state to accredit training programmes in optometry and nursing sciences.

According to him, the exercise covered nursing training at the Federal Medical Centre and Abiriba campuses of the College of Nursing Sciences.

Kanu further announced that preparations had begun for the fourth cohort of the Abia TechRise programme after the successful completion of its first three cohorts.

He said the first three cohorts produced 2,210 graduates, with 88 outstanding participants securing automatic employment into the Abia State Civil Service.

On agriculture, Kanu said the Local Government Agricultural Innovation Programme was progressing across the state's 17 local government areas.

He also announced that Abia would host the 2026 World Igbo Day celebration in September.

The commissioner said the state had recorded no cases of diphtheria or other public health concerns.

He added that the State Public Health Department had established an outbreak prevention and preparedness plan, while the Ministry of Health was focusing its weekly advisory on strengthening preparedness and preventive measures against diphtheria following reported outbreaks in some parts of the country.