Turkana: The Turkana County Government, in partnership with Catholic Relief Services (CRS), launched the second round of the Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention (SMC) campaign. The initiative aims to begin in Kakuma and Kalobeyei preceding the June-October malaria transmission season through CRS’ Child Health and WASH programme.
According to Kenya News Agency, the team, led by Margaret Kahiga, CRS Country Manager, emphasized the use of the WHO-recommended approach to safeguard children during the peak malaria transmission period. Dr. Edwin Mbugua, CRS Program Manager for Health, mentioned that SMC has been successful in Turkana Central for the past two years and will now extend to Kakuma and Kalobeyei.
Dr. Mbugua highlighted the campaign’s goal to eventually cover the entire county, with the current focus on over 132,000 children. He stated that malaria prevention drugs have been obtained with support from the United States.
Deputy Governor Dr. John Erus emphasized the importance of coordination and evidence-based decisions for public health improvement. He reiterated Turkana County’s commitment to enhancing child health and welcomed research-based policies to ensure equitable service delivery for both refugee and host communities.
The launch was attended by Deputy County Secretaries Dr. Albert Gamoe and Joseph Nyanga, Mike Aupe, Deputy Director of Resource Mobilization and Partnerships, and Peterson Erus, Assistant Director, Administration Office of the Governor. Other CRS representatives included Alfred Ireri, Head of Office Turkana, and Branice Kisali.
