Targeting zero: sustaining success in the control of malaria

12 July 2011

Professor David Schellenberg, of the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and Director of the ACT Consortium, has provided MPs with the most up-to-date information on efforts to tackle malaria by producing the seventh annual report for the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Malaria and Neglected Tropical Diseases.

During a launch event in the House of Commons, Prof Schellenberg presented the report to the Group. It focuses on gains in malaria control and prevention since 2000 as well as the need for continued investment in order to meet the Millennium Development Goals on malaria. The report notes that there is now good evidence that an increasing number of countries are winning the battle for malaria control, with 11 countries reporting a decrease of at least 50% in malaria cases between 2000-09. The reduced illness is associated with improved survival, enhanced productivity and stimulated economies. However, the success remains fragile and further investment is required to consolidate and expand the early gains.

The former Chairman of the APPMG, Stephen O'Brien MP, is now Parliamentary Under-secretary of State for International Development and the coalition government has made tackling malaria a major priority, with a commitment to halving the number of people dying from malaria in 10 high burden countries across sub-Saharan Africa.

The report highlights a strong level of collaboration between academics, implementers, pharmaceuticals and civil society, demonstrated through the outputs of the APPMG. The report finishes by making some key recommendations to donors to recognize the significant contribution that effective malaria control can make to achieving progress on global heath and poverty reduction under Millennium Development Goals 1, 4, 5 and 6. The report also urges all donors to acknowledge that, whilst there has been significant success in the fight against malaria, these gains could be lost without sustained investment. Current 2011 funding commitments to tackle malaria amount to just one third of the estimated annual resources needed.

Finally, the report encourages donors to renew their commitment to this fight - one we can win - through bilateral and multilateral support both to organisations investing in malaria control today and those investing in research to prepare for tomorrow. These organisations include the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, the World Health Organisation, World Bank IDA, UNICEF, Roll Back Malaria Partnership and others.

Prof Schellenberg said: "Increased investment in malaria control over the last 10 years has been associated with a 20% reduction in malaria deaths - that's equivalent to over 500 lives per day. But there's a lot more to do and the threat of resistance to drugs and insecticides is very real. Continued investment in the development of new insecticides, drugs, diagnostics and vaccines is essential. At the same time we must get better at delivering the tools to the people who need them, when they need them and put an end to the unnecessary and unacceptable stockouts of drugs in health facilities."

Chair of the APPMG Jeremy Lefroy MP, said: "We will not be satisfied until every home at risk from malaria has sufficient mosquito nets. It is totally unacceptable that almost 800,000 people per year are still dying of malaria. Research for drugs, diagnostics and vaccines needs to be not only maintained but increased. It is only a matter of time before the versatile malaria parasite develops resistance to the drugs which are currently so effective."

Ends

Notes to Editors:

To read the APPMG's annual report 2010-2011, Targeting Zero: Sustaining Success in Malaria Control, go to: http://www.appmg-malaria.org.uk/upload/APPMG_7th_Annual_Report_11th_July_2011.pdf