The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Muhammad Pate, said malaria costs Nigeria over $1.1 billion in annual losses to its Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Mr Pate, a professor disclosed this at the inaugural meeting of the Advisory on Malaria Elimination in Nigeria (AMEN).
According to a statement issued by the Deputy Director of Information & Public Relations of the ministry, Alaba Balogun, the minister noted that malaria is a pressing economic and developmental emergency that must be eliminated.
The minister said Nigeria accounts for 27 per cent of global malaria cases and 31 per cent of global malaria deaths, making the disease a burden on the nation.
He added that in 2022 alone, over 180,000 Nigerian children under the age of five lost their lives to malaria.
“This is not just a health crisis; it is an economic and developmental emergency,” he said.
“Malaria reduces productivity, increases out-of-pocket health expenditures and compounds the…