The Kano State Government has inaugurated a Special Committee on Diphtheria Outbreak Response. The committee is tasked with coordinating a stronger and more unified effort against the disease as outbreaks continue to spread across northern Nigeria.
The committee was inaugurated on Friday by the Commissioner for Health, Dr Abubakar Labaran Yusuf, who described diphtheria as a highly contagious disease capable of spreading rapidly within communities. He noted that the disease has remained a public health concern in Kano State since December 2022. Further stressing that urgent collective action was now needed to protect lives and halt further spread.
Members of the committee were drawn from the state government, local government councils, and emirate councils. This was done in a bid to ensure that the response operates across every level of governance and reaches communities directly. Their responsibilities include ensuring early reporting of suspected cases, strengthening disease surveillance, maintaining accurate case registration, expanding vaccination in areas where coverage remains low, and coordinating the referral of suspected patients for prompt treatment.
Dr Labaran Yusuf identified vaccination and early medical attention as the two most critical tools in controlling the outbreak. He urged parents and caregivers to ensure that all eligible children receive the required vaccination doses. He also called for anyone showing symptoms to be taken immediately to the nearest health facility without delay.
The Kano committee comes against a wider backdrop of concern across northern Nigeria. The NCDC has recorded more than 10,000 confirmed diphtheria cases nationally in 2026. Also, at least 23 people have died from the disease in Plateau State’s Jos North Local Government Area alone in the last three weeks.
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