AbdulAhad Otuoze Lokoja
Initiative for Grassroot Advancement Commitment to Rural Development (INGRA) has said that
four local governments in Kogi state have high level of Tuberculosis outbreak in the state.
The Executive Director, Mr. Hamza Aliyu made this known in Lokoja on Wednesday while marking World TB Day 2021 with the theme, ‘The Time is Ticking”.
He noted that data shows a spike in the prevalence of the disease and a more worrisome increase in the prevalence of Multi-Drug Resistant TB (MDR-TB), especially in the Eastern Senatorial District Ankpa, Dekina, Olamaboro and Ofu since 2010.
According t him, Nigeria with an estimated prevalence of 616 cases per 100,000 ranks first in Africa, and fourth among the 22 high TB burden countries in the world, and no fewer than 460,000 cases of TB are reported annually in Nigeria
He stressed that several challenges hinder eradication of Tuberculosis
in the state such as poor funding adding that almost 100% of the TB Programme in Kogi State is donor funded and this causes concern for sustainability going forward.
He recommended that their is need for improved budgetary allocation and actual fund releases to the State TB Programme as Counter Part funding has not been released in the past 3 years.
“Also the need for improved and effective behaviour change communication efforts to provide capacity to citizens to make the desired Sanitary behaviour
“Implementation of the New Direction Policy on Health which provides for reduction, elimation amd prevention of Public Health issues such as TB,” he sakd.
