Kano suspends malaria campaign, probes implementation over accountability concerns

The Kano State Government has suspended all activities under the ongoing Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention (SMC) programme and launched a high-level investigation into its implementation, citing the need to ensure transparency and accountability in the delivery of one of the state’s largest public health interventions.

The decision, announced on Thursday by the Ministry of Health, immediately halts drug distribution, field operations and community mobilisation across the state pending the outcome of the investigation.

In a further move, the state government suspended the programme manager with immediate effect and transferred oversight of the intervention to the most senior officer in the programme while the probe is underway.

The government also constituted a committee made up of heads of major health institutions to scrutinise every stage of the programme, including planning, personnel engagement, documentation, logistics and distribution processes.

The committee is chaired by the Director-General of the Kano State AIDS Control Agency (SACA), Dr Usman Bashir, and includes the heads of the State Primary Healthcare Management Board, Kano Centre for Disease Control, Hospitals Management Board, Drugs and Medical Consumables Supply Agency, Kano Health Trust Fund, Kano State Contributory Healthcare Management Agency and the Private Health Institutions Management Agency.

As part of the investigation, the Ministry directed the programme’s Monitoring and Evaluation Officer, implementing partners and other stakeholders to submit all operational records, approved work plans, distribution documents and personnel lists for verification.

Although the government did not disclose the specific allegations that prompted the investigation, the sweeping suspension signals concerns over the management of the intervention, which targets thousands of children during the peak malaria transmission season.

The Ministry said the review is intended to strengthen programme integrity and ensure that resources meant for malaria prevention reach intended beneficiaries.

It also assured development partners and residents that the exercise was aimed at improving accountability and enhancing the effectiveness of public health programmes rather than disrupting healthcare delivery.

The government called on all agencies, implementing partners and programme personnel to cooperate fully with the investigative committee as it conducts its assignment.

Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention is a preventive intervention administered annually to eligible children during the rainy season to reduce malaria infections and deaths in high-burden states, including Kano. The programme is supported by both the government and international development partners.