The Way out of Malaria Quagmire
By Sebastine Obasi
Monday, May 05, 2008
The federal government promises to provide N150 billion to fight malaria
Egg-heads in the health sector, last week gathered in the Sheraton Hotels and Towers Lagos, to mark this year's world malaria day, WMD. The event which was chaired by Hassan Lawal, minister of Labour and Productivity, who is also overseeing the ministry of Health, was used to further bring to the front burner, the scourge of malaria. Lawal said it has become imperative to reduce the malaria scourge to the barest minimum by 2010, because it has become the highest cause of morbidity among children under the age of five. It is also the cause of the death of more than 800 people in this age bracket daily.
This, according to him, is the number of people two jumbo jets can carry. In other words, two plane-loads of vulnerable groups are being lost everyday. Lawal explained that it is in recognition of the ugly statistics of malaria, that the world leaders agreed at a summit held in Abuja, in April 25, 2000 to fight Malaria until it is no longer a public health concern. On the strength of that, the Role Back Malaria, RBM, initiative was adopted and the agreed strategies implemented to meet the already defined goals of reducing the burden of malaria in endemic countries by 2010.
In its bid to reduce the scourge in the country, the federal government is to provide N150 billion in support of the campaign. "We are on the brink of a major scale up of all these activities and interventions. The world is calling for it and the right time is now. We shall mobilise N150 billion internally and externally for malaria control in the next three years," Lawal said.
Patrick Ikemefuna, chairman, World Malaria Day Committee said the World Health Organisation, WHO, has realised that the scourge of malaria has gone beyond borders, hence the change from Africa Malaria Day, to World Malaria Day, WMD, to be celebrated on April 25, every year.
According to him, every Nigerian, wherever he is, is prone to malaria attack. And so, any money spent in fighting malaria, is an investment for the future.
Malaria has been estimated to cost Africa more than $12 billion yearly, in loss in Gross Domestic Product, GDP. But it has continued to spread due to weak health systems, deteriorating sanitation, climatic changes and drug resistance.
John Luke Gallup and Jeffrey D. Sachs, said that elimination of malaria in most endemic countries in Africa would largely improve their GDP by over 32 percent and malaria - endemic countries are amongst the world's poorest.
In endemic countries, women are more likely to have malaria during pregnancy than any other time. Similarly, pregnant women with malaria are more likely to develop anaemia and with severe anaemia, there is higher risk of maternal death. Again, infants born to mothers with malaria are more likely to have low birth, the single greatest risk factor for death during the first month of life.
In Nigeria, malaria constitutes a great burden on the already depressed Nigerian economy. It reduces one percent off Nigeria's gross national product. In a study carried out by the Federal Ministry of Health, the incidence of malaria among the under fives across the six geo-political zones shows that South-South has 32.7 percent, South-West 36.6 percent, South-East 30.7 percent, North-Central 58.8 percent, North-East 55.3 percent and North-West 33.6 percent.
It was also found out that malaria accounted for 11 percent of maternal deaths in the study areas. Malaria also accounted for 63 percent of the diseases reported in health care facilities across the six geographical zones. The prevalence of malaria among pregnant women was 47 percent. As a measure of combating the malaria scourge, the federal government embraced the Roll Back Malaria, RBM, project. It is a global partnership initiated by the World Health Organisation, United Nations Development, World Bank and the United Nations Childrens' Fund. The programme aims at ensuring prompt access to treatment within 24 hours of illness especially among the vulnerable groups. It also promotes correct home management of malaria,using artemisinin-based combination therapy, ACT. The programme is on long-lasting insecticidal nets, especially among children under age five and pregnant women.
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