Sultan, Northern Govs Meet Today Over Meningitis
The Sultan of Sokoto, Sa’ad Abubakar III, will, today, hold a meeting with the 19 northern state governors and their health commissioners in Kaduna, Kaduna State, over the outbreak of meningitis.
The Plateau State Commissioner for Health, Kuden Kamshak, disclosed this yesterday in Jos, Plateau State, at a briefing to mark the World Health Day, celebrated on April 7, the birthday of the World Health Organisation, WHO.
Cerebrospinal meningitis, CSM, has spread across 19 states in the country, with 3,959 suspected cases reported and 438 deaths recorded as at April 5.
The Northern states have been worst hit by the epidemic as Zamfara, Katsina and Sokoto, account for 93 percent of the cases reported. Zamfara State is hardest hit with 1,846 suspected cases and 216 deaths.
The Federal Government, last Thursday, kicked off a mass vaccination exercise in the eight most affected local government areas in the state.
The exercise, which initially targeted 300,000 persons aged two to 29 years, witnessed a massive turnout of residents.
