Seek alternate source of funds for your programmes, Bauchi Assembly advises BACATMA

Bauchi State Agency for the Control of HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis/Leprosy, and Malaria (BACATMA), has been advised to as a matter of necessity, look for alternative means of funding its programmes in order to reduce overdependence on donor partners.

The advice was given by the Chairman, Bauchi State House of Assembly Committee on Health, Hon Lawal Dauda when he led other members of the committee on a familiarisation visit to the agency as part of its oversight responsibility.

He said that the measure became necessary in view of the fact that most of the Donor Partners are planning to close out, hence the need to intensify efforts on Domestic Resource Mobilisation to ensure sustainability.

The Chairman, House Committee on Health described the recent Insecticide Treated Net (ITN) mass campaign and the ongoing Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention (SMC) drug administration for under Five children as timely and commendable, said the measure would greatly reduce the prevalence rate of Malaria infection and call for proper utilisation of the insecticide-treated net.

Contributing, the Majority Leader of the House who is also a member of the Committee, Hon. Sale Hodi Disina, stressed the need for engagement of qualified ad-hoc staff while handling such an important exercise for effective implementation.

Disina said that the present administration led by Governor Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed has accorded priority to the health sub-sector in its budgetary allocation to ensure the well-being of the citizenry.

He assured the management of the agency of their readiness to give it the needed support in order to achieve the desired objective.

In his remarks, Hon. Bello S Jadori applauded BACATMA for its unprecedented achievements and pledged to support health MDAs to enable them to deliver for the benefit of the state.

Earlier, Executive Chairman of BACATMA, Dr Sani Mohammed Dambam, expressed appreciation for the visit and intimated the House Committee on the operations of the agency particularly the 4.4 million insecticide-treated net distribution which recorded 95% success while SMC is ongoing across the state.

Dambam, also expressed delight with the support being received by the agency from both the executive and legislative arms of government to enable it to operate optimally.

He said the agency would not relent towards discharging its responsibility diligently as contained in a statement by Mustapha Yunusa, Information Officer, BACATMA.

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