Assessment of Schistosomiasis Risk Zone in Abuja Using Geospatial Technique

Alterations in the physical parameters of the environment are mostly responsible for the rapid proliferation of disease vectors and micro-organisms and the abundance of such diseases as schistosomiasis. Environmental factors such as distance to water body, rainfall, temperature, DEM, slope, land use land cover and NDVI were used geospatially (Multicriteria analysis) to model schistosomiasis risk zones in Abuja. The results signify that 40% of the total area covered in Abuja falls within high and very high risk zones. The villages covered 88.76% while sub urban and town have 10.65%, 0.59% respectively. The findings documented large area of schistosomiasis risk zone which threaten WHO schistosomiasis elimination target but can still be achieved by proper health education to change the behaviour of populations at risk and encourage communities to improve sanitation and infrastructure in order to reduce contact with surface water.