Archives Latest news

World Health Assembly adopts a new resolution to revitalize and accelerate efforts to end malaria

The World Health Assembly, the main governing body of the World Health Organization, has adopted a new resolution that aims to revitalize and accelerate efforts to end malaria, a preventable and treatable disease that continues to claim more than 400, 000 lives annually.

Led by the United States of America and Zambia – and co-sponsored by Botswana, Canada, Chile, China and others like the United Kingdom, and Member States of the European Union – the resolution comes at a critical time as global progress against malaria stalls and the COVID-19 pandemic threatens to further derail efforts to tackle the disease worldwide.

The resolution urges Member States to step up the pace of progress through plans and approaches that are consistent with WHO’s updated global malaria strategy and the WHO Guidelines for malaria.

It calls on countries to extend investment in and support for health services, ensuring no one is left behind; sustain and scale up sufficient funding for the global malaria response; and boost investment in the research and development of new tools.

Over the last 5 years, WHO’s work on malaria has been guided by the Global technical strategy for malaria 2016-2030, adopted by the Assembly in May 2015. The strategy set ambitious goals for reductions in case incidence and death rates of at least 90% by 2030, with milestones at each 5-year mark to track progress. In addition, it called for eliminating malaria in 35 countries and preventing the re-establishment of malaria in all countries that are malaria-free.

This new resolution is particularly welcome at a time when global malaria control efforts have been losing ground,” said Dr Pedro Alonso, Director of the WHO Global Malaria Programme. “It sends a very strong signal that countries around the world are committed to scaling up action towards a common goal: a world free of malaria.”

Despite a period of unprecedented success in global malaria control, with an estimated 7.6 million deaths and 1.5 billion cases averted since 2000, the global gains in combating malaria have levelled off in recent years.  According to the latest World malaria report, there were approximately 229 million new cases of malaria in 2019, an annual estimate that has remained virtually unchanged since 2015.

Related posts

Cabinet gives green light for the construction of Tamale, Yapei and Damongo water systems at 233 million Euros.

Abdul-Gafaru Abdulai

“I am not ready to work with any supporter or party executive who attack my opponent”, Sule Salifu

Mutaka Mohammed

Having sex in the morning is better than doing it at night

Mutaka Mohammed

Leave a Comment

%d bloggers like this: