Federal Government, through the National Malaria Elimination Programme (NMEP), has concluded plans to subsidise malaria diagnostic tests and medicines in a bid to reduce the cost of treatment and improve access to quality-assured commodities for vulnerable Nigerians in rural communities.

The initiative, known as the Affordable Diagnostics and Medicines Facility for Malaria (ADMFM), will initially target the private sector, particularly patent and proprietary medicine vendors (PPMVs), in underserved communities.

The programme, which has over N2 billion funding from the World Bank-supported IMPACT project, is expected to provide about four million diagnostic test kits and nearly two million treatment courses.

The National Coordinator of the National Malaria Elimination Programme (NMEP), Dr Nnenna Ogbulafor, disclosed this in Abuja and said the initiative was designed to make malaria diagnosis and treatment more affordable.

She stressed the importance of testing before treatment, noting that fever can be caused by several illnesses and should not be automatically treated as malaria.

Ogbulafor observed that once malaria was confirmed through diagnosis, patients would be given appropriate treatment with artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs).

She disclosed that the initial intervention would be implemented in Borno and Ekiti states, with plans to subsequently expand to Abia, Ondo and other World Bank-supported states.

Ogbulafor said the limited funding necessitated a phased approach, but expressed hope that state governments and the End Malaria Council, chaired by Aliko Dangote, would support expanding the programme to more communities.

According to her, the private sector was being prioritised because available data showed that about 50 per cent of Nigerians seek care first in private facilities when suffering from febrile illnesses.

Ogbulafor said that ensuring every suspected malaria case is properly diagnosed and that confirmed cases receive effective, affordable treatment is critical to Nigeria’s efforts to eliminate the disease.

She stressed the need to move away from presumptive treatment, insisting that malaria case management must be driven by testing, confirmation and appropriate treatment.

According to her, the availability of affordable antimalarial medicines at healthcare delivery points was equally important to achieving effective case management.

In his remarks, the Head of Projects and Speciality Programme at Emzor Pharmaceutical Industries Limited, Sunday Agamah, said the company had collaborated with NMEP for almost a year to provide quality and affordable malaria medicines under the programme.

Similarly, Pharmacist Rotimi Afolaogun of Codix Group said the company would make rapid diagnostic tests available under the initiative.

Also speaking, Jerome Dagun Joseph of Fidson Healthcare Plc said the company would produce affordable anti-malaria medicines, including AL-1 and AL-2, for underserved populations.