WHO Malaria Conference: Health ministers commit to end deaths
Health Ministers from 11 countries most affected by malaria have agreed to jointly tighten the noose on disease, and end mortality in Africa.
The commitment was taken at the end of the Malaria Ministerial Conference organized in Yaounde on March 6 by the World Health Organization (WHO).
“This declaration reflects our shared commitment as nations and partners to protect our people from the devastating consequences of malaria. We will work together to ensure that this commitment is translated into action and impact,” Dr. Manaouda Malachie, Cameroon’s Minister of Public Health said at the meeting.
The Ministers who have been attending the Malaria Ministerial Conference committed to this life-saving goal as they penned their signatures on the Yaoundé Declaration.
The #YaoundeDeclaration was signed by the Public Health Ministers of 11 countries responsible for over 70% of annual global malaria incidence and 73% of global malaria mortality, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
It is a seven-point declaration that spells out areas of concern with regards the fight against Malaria; strengthening political will, ensuring strategic use of information for action, providing better technical assistance, enhancing coordination and multi-sectoral action, strengthening national health systems, building collaborative partnerships for resource mobilization, research and innovation, and ensuring a functional Malaria accountability mechanism.
Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa, described the declaration as a milestone, during a press conference that followed its signing .
“We welcome today’s ministerial declaration, which demonstrates a strong political will to reduce the burden of this deadly disease. With renewed urgency and commitment. We can accelerate progress towards a future free of malaria.”
Henceforth, governments of the countries concerned and other African countries will be on a common front to ultimately eliminate the scourge that has so far claimed 434,000 lives in 2022, according to WHO. An estimated 171 million cases were reported in these 12 countries, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Mali, Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria, Uganda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, Sudan of Khartoum and India, in the same year.
Cameroon’s Malaria Record
Cameroon is one of the 11 countries most affected by malaria. The country’s National Malaria Control Programme puts the prevalence of the disease at 26.1%. Malaria accounted for 30% of consultations in 2021, and 50% hospitalizations in health facilities. A total of 2.9 million malaria cases were recorded in 2023, and 1,756 malaria deaths rein health facilities in 2023 in Cameroon.
While officially opening the Malaria Ministerial Conference, the Prime Minister and Head of Government, Chief. Dr. Joseph Dion Ngute called on all participants to work in synergy to roll back the disease.
Following the signing of the Yaounde Declaration, countries will have to hold themselves accountable with regards the commitments made to reverse mortality trends in the continent.
Kathy Neba Sina
