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Countries urged by WHO to employ new strategies in the fight against malaria

Countries urged by WHO to employ new strategies in the fight against malaria

The World Health Organization (WHO) has urged countries to take advantage of new and existing anti-malaria interventions, including the use of its pilot vaccine program, to save lives, particularly in Africa. WHO’s Director-General, Mr Tedros Ghebreyesus, made the call in his message to mark the 2023 World Malaria Day on April 25. The latest World Malaria Report published by the WHO in December 2022 revealed that an estimated 247 million new cases of malaria occurred in 2021. In Ghana, Kenya, and Malawi, nearly 1.5 million children at high risk of illness and death from malaria had received the first dose of the first-ever malaria vaccine, according to the report.

The malaria vaccine pilots, launched in 2019, aim to increase equity in access to prevention tools for the most vulnerable and are already saving lives, according to the WHO. If implemented broadly, the UN health agency estimates that every year, the vaccines could save tens of thousands of lives. A second malaria vaccine, if approved, could help close the sizable gap between supply and demand and further reduce child illnesses and deaths from malaria, the WHO said.

The WHO also stated that 28 new products in the research and development pipeline include innovative tools such as new types of insecticide-treated nets, targeted baits that attract mosquitoes, and genetic engineering of mosquitoes. The African region accounted for an estimated 95% of all malaria cases and 96% of all deaths in 2021, according to the WHO. It added that nearly 80% of malaria deaths in Africa occurred among children under the age of five.

In addition, the WHO stated that challenges in expanding access to malaria services had been compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. Converging humanitarian crises, restricted funding, weak surveillance systems, and declines in the effectiveness of core malaria-fighting tools had been other challenges. To address these threats and support countries in building more resilient malaria programs, the WHO recently published a series of new tools. These include a strategy to contain antimalarial drug resistance in Africa and a framework, jointly developed by the WHO and UN-Habitat, to guide city leaders in urban malaria control.

The WHO stressed that continued investment in the development and deployment of new vaccines and next-generation tools would be essential to achieving the 2030 global malaria targets.

We have the tools to drive down malaria – a package of interventions that includes vector control, preventive medicines, testing, and treatment,” Ghebreyesus said.

The theme for the 2023 World Malaria Day is: “Time to deliver zero malaria: invest, innovate, implement’’. (NAN)

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