With COVID-19 spreading rapidly around the globe, and world health partnerships focusing on tackling the virus, WHO restates the need to ensure that life-saving essential services such as malaria prevention and treatment, are sustained and maintained.
WHO in collaboration with the National Malaria Elimination Programme (NMEP) and other partners, are working towards maintaining key interventions during the pandemic. There is also concern that due to similarities in symptoms of malaria and COVID-19, there may be low health seeking behaviour which will impact negatively on malaria. Nigeria recognizes that COVID-19 poses a threat to other health programmes the potential to cause disruption or slowdown of malaria elimination activities.
WHO continues to be committed to providing technical assistance to the Nigeria Malaria Elimination Program.