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| Multimammate Rat |
Social Investment Programme Plateau State enlightens strategic
partners on Lassa fever
By Joseph A. Adudu
February 11, 2020
The Social Investment Programme (
SIP), Plateau State chapter on Monday engaged its strategic partners in awareness
of the dreaded Lassa fever. Speaking during the occasion, the Executive
Assistant to Governor Simon Lalong on SIP, Dr. Sumaye Hamza said that the
awareness was on preventive measures to LGA Desk Officers, Education
Secretaries, Members of the National Home Grown School Feeding ( NHGSF ) Multi
- Sectoral Team, NHealth beneficiaries of NPower who work in Primary Health
Care Centers in the state, aggregators, Cooks and Head Teachers of Primary
Schools. Speaking further, Hamza said " the recent health challenge in the
country, is the cases of Lassa fever caused by species of rodent referred
to as multimammate rat recorded in some states across the country.
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| Dr. Framcis |
‘We are aware that the Social
Investment Programme is an intervention that targets the poor and vulnerable in
our beloved country. These categories include children, women, men, the aged, people
with disability and indeed youths,"
She said that the components of the Social Investment
Programme is the National Home Grown School Feeding where over 220,000 are fed
by over 2,800 cooks in the 17 LGAs of the state stressing that the value chain
in actualizing the objectives of that laudable achievement was wide and robust.
" Because we are concerned on the health of all that are involved in this
particular activity, we have deem it fit to call this meeting to create
awareness on Lassa Fever preventive measures," Dr. Hamza said.
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| From right, Dr. Hamza, Hon. Volgap, Dabit |
She further
stated that the activity was a proactive measure aimed at ensuring safety of
all and sundry adding that as government was making everything possible to
curtail the spread of Lassa fever, so it was in SIP office. "We are
committed to this task; I am optimistic that you will all cooperate", she
said.
Hamza urged
participants to be committed toward ensuring that highest level of hygiene was
maintained in their factories, homes and schools to prevent not only Lassa fever
but any other form of disease. “We all have a responsibility and we are all
strategic and critical stakeholders in this process," Dr. Hamza stated.
She said that a
healthy society was needed so that developmental interventions can be
effectively implemented saying that all concerned must ensure that hand washing
becomes routine in schools and homes.
Addressing
participants, the resource person, Dr. Dabe Francis said Lassa fever is an
acute viral infection that was discovered in Lasa, a community in Borno state
North - East Nigeria. He said the disease which is cause by rodent and
incubation period is between 5 to 21 days is common in Nigeria, Liberia, Sierra
Leone and Guinea.
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| Cross section of articipants |
Dr. Francis added
that transmission of the disease is in two ways which are; rodent to human and
human to human. According to him, rodent to human is through ingestion of foods
or materials contaminated by infected rodent's excreta or urine, catching and
preparing mastommy as a food source and inhalation of aerosolized virus while
human to human transmission is through direct contact with infected blood
tissues, secretion or excretion of infected humans. He said that symptoms
include; fever, general body weakness, headache, sore throat, muscle pain,
nausea, diarrhea, facial swelling among others.
Dr. Francis
posited that the best option to Lassa fever menace is the preventive measures
through personal and environmental hygiene which include keeping foods and
water covered to prevent contamination by rat, storing of grains and other food
stuffs in rodent-proof containers, disposing of garbage far from homes and
maintain clean households, avoid drying food items and other materials in open
places, avoid touching rats with open hands and avoid contact with blood and
body fluids while caring for sick persons.
Speaking earlier,
Hon. Ezekiel Volgap, the executive Chairman of Mikang Local Government who is
also the Chairman of the Association of Local Government in Nigeria (ALGON)
Plateau state chapter, said the exercise was timely and significant taking into
cognizance the sensitive and delicate nature of children who needed to be
handled with utmost care stressing that when the necessary precaution and
preventive measures are adhered to and not only Lassa fever but other diseases
are prevented, it would go a long way in adding to the success story of the
Social Investment Programme as the nation would boast of robust future
generation. The ALGON Chairman commended Dr. Sumaye Hamza for her untiring
commitment and efforts toward the implementation SIP in Plateau state and
reiterated the total and unflinching support of the 17 Local Government Chairmen
to SIP in Plateau state. "On our part, (the 17 Local Government Chairmen),
we are solidly behind you. My colleagues have asked me to tell you that you are
doing wonderfully well and that you should continue doing that because it's
your own contribution to nation building," he said.
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| Participants |
There were
goodwill messages from NASCO Group, represented by Barr. Haroun Audu, its
Marketing Consultant, PACHA MAMA, represented by Otunohweroro Andrew, its Chief
Operations Officer, Bulus Dabit, Director, National Orientation Agency Plateau
state and Mrs. Felicity Gurumyen, the General Manager CSDA, Plateau state.
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