The Minister of State for Environment, Dr Iziaq Adekunle Salako, has launched the National Deratizeation Framework Exercise to prevent and control the spread of Lassa fever in the country.
The Minister, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Environment, Mahmud Adam Kambari, while briefing the press in Abuja, said its agency stand to provide update on the recent outbreak of Lassa fever reported by forty four Army Reference Hospital in Kaduna State and subsequent spread of the disease in the state.
According to the State Emergency Response Team (SERT), twelve suspected cases were recorded with six deaths; two additional cases originated from another facility in Barau Dikko Hospital, while ninety two persons are under surveillance as contact persons, adding that the team visited the affected facility on February 25, 2024.
In his remarks, the Registrar, Environmental Health Council of Nigeria (EHCON), Dr Yakubu Baba Muhammad, reiterated that the Minister’s directives on all the facilities, whether public or private, should undergo derating exercise. He said places such as hotels, markets, restaurants, and recreation centres will be issued a derating exemption certificate by EHCON.
“At the community level, the issue of waste management cannot be overemphasized. At this time and period, remnant food should not be exposed, while our foodstuffs and stores should be rat-proof. In the character of rats, once there is no food, rats vacate the house,” he added.
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