The Ministry of Health is set to administer the second round of seasonal malaria chemoprevention (SMC) to curb the accelerating rate of malaria cases during the May and September seasons in Turkana County.
SMC involves giving children monthly courses of antimalarial medicines, usually for four or five months per year, in locations where malaria is highly seasonal.
In a statement on Saturday, March 8, the Public Health Principal Secretary, Mary Muthoni, confirmed that the exercise would be conducted in June 2025.
Turkana is among the counties in the country where the burden of malaria still punches hard, with an estimated 474 cases per 1000 people.
"The second round of SMC in Turkana Central is scheduled for June 2025 and will integrate a digital campaign approach using the eCHIS platform," she stated
According to the PS, the government administered the first round of SMC to the county, which targeted 38,585 children, back in June 2024, a step that she asserted has reduced the disease burden in the county by 70 per cent.
"Launched in June 2024 with support from Catholic Relief Services (CRS), the SMC campaign targeted 38,585 children under five years to prevent malaria episodes during peak transmission periods. Over five cycles, each spaced 28 days apart, 71 per cent (27,206 children) of the targeted population completed all five doses," she said.
Malaria remains a major public health concern, with the country reporting an incidence rate of 104 cases per 1,000 people.
According to the PS, counties like Busia, Kakamega, Kisumu, Migori, Siaya, and Vihiga have recorded 748 malaria cases per 1,000 people, while counties such as Bungoma, Homa Bay, Kwale, Turkana, and West Pokot have recorded an incidence of 474 cases per 1,000 people. The 11 counties have the highest burden of malaria in the country.
"Malaria remains a major public health concern in Kenya, with the country reporting approximately 5.5 million cases in 2023, translating to an incidence rate of 104 cases per 1,000 population," she stated.
However, Muthoni has cemented that in the past year, the government has executed several preventative measures to ensure that populations in these regions are shielded from the disease, especially during the rainy seasons when malaria cases increase.
Apart from the SMC, the ministry has further leveraged other interventions such as the distribution of insecticide-treated nets (ITNs), improved malaria case management, and the introduction of targeted prevention strategies, including indoor residual spraying (IRS), efforts which the PS has affirmed are bearing fruit.
For instance, following the execution of these preventative measures in Busia and Migori counties last year, there was a 50 per cent decline in malaria incidents, according to the PS.
"This intervention provided protection to approximately 2 million people. Notably, malaria incidence in Busia County declined significantly by 50%, dropping from 746 cases per 1,000 population in 2023 to 358 per 1,000 in 2024," she stated.
