Kisii government has been challenged to invest more in the fight against jiggers in the interior parts of the county following reports that over 20,000 people were fighting the menace in different parts of the county.
On Thursday, anti-jigger crusader Allan Mutange who leads the Free from Jiggers campaigns said the menace was spreading first in interior parts of the county making it cumbersome for his group to tackle it effectively.
According to him, South Mugirango and Bobasi constituencies were among the most infested and asked the county to intervene to reduce the infection rate.
“At least one of the five households we visit, we must treat a person infested with jiggers. The number is substantially increasing and it’s becoming difficult for my group to tackle the menace. For instance in South Mugirango, the situation is escalating and that is why I call upon the county government to consider joining the campaigns,” he said.
He urged the department of health through the county assembly to allocate funds that could be used by a parallel group to help in reaching out to victims in the region.
“My advice to the county government is that they should allocate funds through the county assembly and constitute a parallel group that can help the Free from Jiggers campaigns that is being run by well-wishers under my supervision,” he added.
Mutange said the region could see more children drop out of institutions due to stigma leading to decline in performances.