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It’s reported that 90% of the world’s annual malaria deaths occur in Africa.
In 2022, the World Health Organisation (WHO) estimated that malaria killed more than 600 000 people worldwide and infected 250 million.
While South Africa has made massive strides over the last two decades in reducing malaria deaths by over 91%, from 459 to 38 between 2000 and 2020, people are still dying from the disease, although the majority of the malaria cases recorded are not locally acquired.
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So, any breakthrough in the battle against malaria must be celebrated, making yesterday’s announcement that Cape Verde became the third African nation to be declared malaria-free – after Mauritius in 1973 and Algeria in 2019 – a huge success.
To be certified as malaria-free country, WHO requires showing the domestic chain of transmission has been broken for at least three consecutive years.
Cape Verde may only have just under 600 000 inhabitants, but it again shows that the elimination of malaria is possible.
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South Africa has aligned its strategy to that of WHO’s global technical strategy, “where surveillance, system strengthening, case management, health promotion and vector control, feature prominently”.
We must not let up in the fight to eliminate malaria.