The Katsina State Government says suspected diphtheria cases have been recorded in 29 Local Government Areas of the state due to its porous international border with Niger Republic and suboptimal vaccination uptake.
The acting Executive Secretary of the state Primary Health Care Agency, Dr Shaimau Kabir Abba, disclosed this on Sunday evening while briefing journalists on the current diphtheria outbreak and measures being taken to contain its spread.
She listed Funtua as the most affected local government, followed by Kankia, Bakori, Katsina, Mashi and Daura, among other affected areas.
She explained that reactive vaccination against the disease commenced on August 25 in 15 high-risk wards across Bakori, Charanchi, Funtua, Mashi and Kankia local government areas respectively.
Abba said: “As of epidemiological week of 2026, Katsina State has recorded suspected cases of diphtheria across 29 local government areas. The distribution of the cases shows that some LGAS are more affected than others, with Funtua recording the highest burden, followed by other affected LGAs, including Kankia, Bakori, Katsina, Mashi and Daura”.
She noted that active case search, contact tracing, surveillance and chemoprophylaxis of contacts are also being intensified, while infection prevention and control measures are being reinforced in health facilities across the affected local governments.
Beyond vaccination, she said the state government had established three isolation centres in addition to the existing NCDC-supported isolation centre at the Federal Teaching Hospital, Katsina to strengthen the management of suspected and confirmed cases.
She added that essential drugs, medical consumables and infection prevention and control materials had been provided by the state government to support the NCDC centre at the Federal Teaching Hospital.
The acting executive secretary said case-management drugs are also being pre-positioned in affected areas, while health workers are receiving additional training on diphtheria surveillance and case management.
She further disclosed that the state government had secured 650,000 additional doses of diphtheria-containing vaccines for reactive vaccination in high-risk and affected communities.
“Despite’s these efforts, We continue to face important challenges. These include suboptimal vaccination update, late presentation of suspected cases to health facilities and the challenge posed by our porous international border with the Niger Republic”, she added.
She reiterated the agency’s commitment to working with development partners to address the gaps while simultaneously strengthening routine immunisation to reduce the number of susceptible children.
Abba appealed to parents and caregivers to ensure that their children receive all recommended vaccines, describing vaccination as one of the safest and most effective ways of preventing diphtheria.
She urged residents to seek medical attention if they or their children develop symptoms including sore throat, fever, difficulty swallowing or breathing, swelling of the neck, or a thick greyish or whitish membrane in the throat, tonsils or nose.
Francis Sardauna
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