Abiru Leads Mosquito Control Campaign to Curb Malaria Deaths

By Our Reporter

In commemoration of World Mosquito Day observed globally this week Thursday, a pest control expert, Mr Bamidele Abiru, carried out a medical outreach at Gosa Community in the Federal Capital Territory on the control of mosquitoes to prevent malaria and the estimated 200,000 yearly fatalities recorded in Nigeria.

Abiru, who conducted the medical outreach under the auspices of Greenbox Facilities Limited, said between 600,000 and 700,000 people in Sub-Saharan Africa die yearly from malaria attacks, with about 200,000 of the deaths occurring in Nigeria alone.
According to him, mosquitoes are among the deadliest threats to human health and must be prevented from breeding and gaining access to homes.
“Most people do not know that mosquitoes are among the deadliest killers of humans. Between 600,000 and 700,000 people in Sub-Saharan Africa die from malaria every year,” he said.
He added that of the estimated 700,000 yearly malaria fatalities in Sub-Saharan Africa, Nigeria alone records between 180,000 and 200,000 deaths, bearing the world’s heaviest malaria burden. Nigeria accounts for approximately 27 per cent of global malaria cases and over 30 per cent of all global malaria deaths.
Towards reducing the scourge, Abiru, at the outreach, urged residents of Gosa to maintain a clean and hygienic environment as an effective preventive measure against mosquito breeding and the spread of malaria.
“To prevent breeding of mosquitoes, spreading and, by extension, malaria in our various neighbourhoods, we must eliminate stagnant water, clear overgrown vegetation and maintain clean surroundings,” he said.
Also speaking, Dr Nnena Ogbulafor, Coordinator of the National Malaria Elimination Programme (NMEP), urged Nigerians to preserve their environment and keep it free of mosquito breeding sites.
Represented by Mr Henry Odume, Assistant Chief Scientific Officer under the Integrated Vector Management Unit, Ogbulafor said malaria prevalence in the FCT declined from 18.8 per cent in 2021 to 7.9 per cent in 2025.