Minister of Health, Professor Onyebuchi Chukwu
The Federal Regime on Wednesday verbally expressed it would require adscititious $700m (N112bn) within the next three years to step up its campaign against malaria.
The figure was disclosed by a senior official, National Malaria Elimination Programme, Federal Ministry of Health, Dr. Nnenna Ezeigwe, during a presentation made at a workshop in Abuja on Wednesday.
The workshop, fortified by Access Bank Plc and other key players in the private sector, was targeted at how to compose partnership towards eliminating malaria and expedite impact on maternal and child health.
Ezeigwe verbalized predicated on the strategic plan of the ministry, a funding gap of $700m had been identified between now and 2017 to carry out programmes that would avail reduce the prevalence of malaria.
She verbally expressed the N112bn was aside the resources that had already been provided by the Federal Regime and its other key partners for the fight against malaria.
To this end, Ezeigwe verbally expressed the regime would require the intervention of the private sector in areas such as diagnostics tests, establishment of malaria control centres, and establishing firms for the local engenderment of insecticide nets among others.
She verbalized, “Based on our strategic plan, we have intervention areas such as the rapid diagnostics tests, programme management and communications.
“So, we endeavored to cost all those areas between now and up to 2017. And then we have now taken account of the funding and the resources we have at the moment, resources from regime and our partners and then the gap is what we have projected cumulatively and this gives us about $700m.”
Also verbalizing at the event, the Head, Development Banking, Access Bank Plc, Mr. Oluwatoyin Idowu, verbalized the bank would perpetuate to fortify the regime not only in the fight against malaria, but to ascertain a salubrious populace.
He verbalized, “We will partner with them in order to optically canvass the issues relating to maternal health and reduction in child mortality. As a bank, we partner the private sector in terms of giving out loans to them to do their businesses and because most of these health businesses you are optically discerning are not conventionally for commercial viability.
“So, what we do is to come in as a bank and avail these areas where convivial investments are being made by financing this type of programme.”
Copyright PUNCH.
