Worried by the prevailing outbreak of Cerebrospinal meningitis, which has claimed over 400 lives in northern Nigeria, Plateau State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Kuden Kamshak has disclosed that the Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar III, has summoned all the 19 northern governors to a meeting.
The parley, he said, is to seek alternative ways of importing vaccines.
Kamshak stated this, yesterday, during a media briefing in Jos, to mark the 2017 World Health Day. He said the meeting will hold today to find ways of preventing the spread of the killer disease.
“The recent outbreak of cerebrospinal meningitis in some northern states in Nigeria and the appearance of type C stereotype of Neisseria meningitis organism, as against the type A strain, calls for concerted effort to curb further spread of the disease.
“The Sultan of Sokoto has summoned the Northern Governors Forum to a meeting in Kaduna, on Tuesday (today), to find a way of importing vaccines to prevent the spread of the disease.
“From the recent briefing we had with Federal Government, there are only 5,000 vaccines, globally, for cerebrospinal meningitis and Nigeria, alone, has applied for 800,000, which is not enough to curb the outbreak of the disease in the North,” Kamshak said. He noted that the federal government, at the weekend, said about 328 persons had died from the outbreak of the disease that has affected 16 states and 90 Local Government Areas. Kamshak confirmed three cases in the Children’s ward of Plateau Specialists Hospital, Jos, and advised people to avoid overcrowded premises and be sleeping in well ventilated and properly lighted houses.
He urged Plateau residents, in the case of Lassa Fever resurgence, to observe personal hygiene, environmental sanitation and avoid bush burning and eating left over foods suspected to be contaminated by rats droppings.
