ADDIS ABABA, Feb. 16 (Xinhua) -- Officials and experts on Sunday called for renewed commitments in Africa's fight against malaria, as they warned that the continent's progress against malaria is "in jeopardy" due to a combination of natural and man-made challenges.
This came during a high-level briefing on malaria that was held Sunday on the sidelines of the 38th African Union (AU) Summit at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia.
Addressing the event, Duma Boko, president of Botswana, stressed that Africa's positive progress in the fight against the deadly disease has been hampered by a combination of factors, including inadequate financing, and natural and man-made catastrophes.
"The task before us is both challenging and urgent. Our progress has stopped, and the hard truth is that we are not on track. A perfect storm of threats, including insufficient resources, climate change, biological risks, and humanitarian crisis, threatens to undermine our efforts," said Boko, who is also the incoming chair of African Leaders Malaria Alliance (ALMA).
He said as the African continent is threatened by a growing number of malaria outbreaks, the Southern Africa region is currently bracing for an upsurge as heavy rainfall creates mosquito breeding sites.
"Securing the resources necessary to combat malaria and fill these critical gaps with renewed energy is imperative. Africa must urgently rise to the challenge by mobilizing domestic resources, including by drawing down on the resources in our emergency funds and increasing our health budget allocations," he added.
A new report on the state of malaria in Africa, which was launched on the margins of the AU Summit, revealed that despite preventing 1.8 billion malaria cases and saving 11.9 million lives since 2000, Africa's progress against malaria has now stagnated.
Noting that the continent is "at a defining moment" in its fights against malaria, the report said the interim targets for 2025 are slipping out of reach, and the dream of eliminating malaria by 2030 is in jeopardy.
Chikwe Ihekweazu, the World Health Organization (WHO) acting regional director for Africa, said African countries have continued to grapple with challenges obstructing the elimination of malaria. He said such challenges include fragile health systems, weak surveillance, chronic funding shortfall, and anti-malarial drug resistance.
Noting that 11 African countries bear about two-thirds of the world's malaria burden, Ihekweazu said the burden of malaria and the challenges of addressing it are most acute in Africa.
Against this background, experts and policymakers at the high-level briefing, lauded Egypt's achievements against malaria, as the country was recognized by the WHO as malaria-free, marking a significant public health milestone for a country with more than 100 million inhabitants. ■
