COVID-19 Delta wave kills three in Akwa Ibom State

Cross River targets 930,000 pregnant women, children for health services
The Delta variant of COVID-19 pandemic has claimed three lives of the 156 new positive cases in Akwa Ibom State.

State Chairman of COVID-19 Committee and Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Dr. Emmanuel Ekuwem, disclosed this yesterday, while briefing newsmen in Uyo.

He explained that the number of infected persons in the state had increased from five to 156, and therefore, urged all citizens to obey all COVID-19 guidelines and protocols

Ekuwem declared that all COVID-19 monitoring mechanisms have been reactivated to ensure strict compliance with guidelines and protocols, noting that such would assist the state to contain the new wave.

Government, therefore, advised citizens to ensure that social distancing in tricycles and mini-buses and wearing of face masks are strictly complied with.

“Churches and Mosques should run at half capacity and services should last not more than one hour. Hotels, sit-outs, clubs, schools, transport companies, supermarkets, Banks, pharmacies should all ensure compliance with all Covid-19 preventive measures in their facilities,” he said.

He urged the people to report any suspicious symptoms such as fever, cough, difficulty in breathing, body pains and weakness to the nearest COVID-19 facility or call help lines: 08000275664, 08189411111.

MEANWHILE, the Cross River State government has disclosed that it has targeted 930,000 pregnant women and children for healthcare from the 2021 Maternal Newborn and Child Health Week (MNCHW).

Wife of the governor, Dr. Linda Ayade, unveiled the Inactivated Polio Virus Vaccine 2 (IPV2) in partnership with the National Primary Healthcare Development Agency (NPHDA) and other development partners, yesterday, by in a Muslim Community at Bogobiri, Calabar.

Director-General of the State Primary Healthcare Development Agency (CRSPHCDA), Dr. Janet Ekpenyong, said this year’s exercise will target 900, 000 children for vaccination against polio, while 30, 000 pregnant mothers will receive mosquito nets and other supplements to boost their immune system.

“During this year’s MNCHW, 900,000 will be given the IPV2, while 30,000 pregnant women will receive medical kits and access services. This is an opportunity to ensure that pregnant women have access to all supplements and also ensure that children are dewormed and access needed vaccines,” she said.

Epenyong said the exercise was aimed at achieving high impact, because it would help to bridge the gap created by the COVID-19 pandemic crisis, adding that health workers have been assigned to remote areas where pregnant women and children usually find it difficult to access healthcare.

Also speaking, Commissioner for Health, Dr. Betta Edu, said the idea was to reach women and children with the best healthcare services that would keep them alive.

“The IPVs are now being administered so that we don’t have a polio outbreak in the state and the state government is determined to reduce mortality of pregnant mothers and children to zero level and ultimately achieve universal health coverage,” she said.

On her part, Ayade enjoined husbands to support their wives and children in receiving the best healthcare the state government was providing, adding that the state no longer want to lose children and pregnant mothers due to circumstances that can be avoided.

She, however, pledged to set up a branch of Cross River Emancipation Initiative (CROWEI) in Bogobiri to enable Muslim women to get timely information and needed assistance when the need arises.