Before World Malaria Day on Friday, the UN Health Agency that asks for renewed efforts at all levels, from global politics to community action, to accelerate progress towards elimination.
Malaria is spread by some types of mosquitoes and is mainly found in tropical countries. Symptoms, which can be soft or potentially mortal, include fever, chills and headache, seizures and difficulty breathing.
Africa continues to carry a disproportionately high participation of the global malaria load. In 2023, approximately 94 percent of all cases, and 95 percent of the deaths occurred in the region. Most deaths, 76 percent, were among children under five.
Eye in elimination
Who recalled that at the end of the 1990s, world leaders adopted effective policies that led to the prevention of more than two billion cases and almost 13 million deaths since 2000.
As a result, 45 countries and a territory have been certified as malaria freeand many other countries continue along the way to elimination.
Of the remaining 83 countries of malaria worldwide, 25 reported less than 10 cases in 2023.
However, WHO general director Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that history has shown that these profits are fragile because “when we deviate our attention, the disease resurfaces, which has the greatest cost of the most vulnerable.” (How about using this as an extraction level?)
But history also reveals what is possible, he added. Tedros insisted that “with a strong political commitment, sustained investment, multisectoral action and community participation, Malaria can be defeated. “
Net investment
Who said that years of investments in the development and deployment of new malaria vaccines, as well as tools to prevent and control the disease, are paying off.
On World Malaria Day, Mali will join 19 African countries in the introduction of malaria vaccineswhich represents a vital step to protect young children from one of the most fatal diseases on the continent. The large -scale deployment of malaria vaccines in Africa is expected to save tens of thousands of young lives every year.
Meanwhile, the expanded use of a new generation of mosquito networks treated with insecticides is established to make more incursions against the disease.
Progress in danger
However, despite significant profits, malaria remains a great public health challenge. Almost 600,000 deaths occurred alone in 2023With the most affected African region.
In many areas, progress has been hindered by fragile health systems and growing threats such as drug resistance and insecticides, who said. Many groups at risk also continue to lose the necessary services to prevent, detect and treat malaria.
These challenges are aggravated by climate change, conflict, poverty and displacement, while fund cuts this year could further derail progress in many endemic countries, which puts millions of additional lives at risk.
A renewed call
World Malaria Day 2025 is celebrated under the subject Malaria ends with us: reinvirt, reimagine, reigne, And who is asking for an intensified political and financial commitment to protect profits won with so much effort to date.
TOreinvest, Who joins partners and civil society to ask the endemic countries of malaria to increase domestic spending, particularly in primary health care.
The agency also emphasizes the need to revive the commitment to help end the transmission of malaria at all levels, from communities and first -line health workers, to governments, researchers, private sector innovators and donors.
