Malaria still endemic to Philippines, 9 other countries

MANILA, Philippines—The World Health Organization urged member-countries on Tuesday to beef up “proven and cost-effective” measures to fight malaria, noting that the disease was still endemic to the Philippines and nine other countries in the region.

The WHO estimated that malaria, a mosquito-borne infectious disease, affects 216 million people across the world and kills about 655,000 each year.

In the Western Pacific Region, malaria is still endemic—constantly present—in the Philippines, China, Cambodia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, South Korea, Solomon Islands, Vietnam, Vanuatu and Laos.

Last year, the WHO monitored roughly 262,000 confirmed malaria cases and about 900 malaria deaths in the region.

“It’s crucial that efforts are sustained and expanded and that there be more national and international political commitment, resources and support for ongoing research and development for new and better tools to combat emerging threats, such as drug and insecticide resistance,” said Dr. Shin Young-soo, WHO Western Pacific regional director.

Shin made the urgent call to mark “World Malaria Day” on Wednesday, with the theme “Sustain Gains. Save Lives. Invest in Malaria,” stressing that half of the world’s population is at risk of contracting the disease.

On the eve of the global observance, Shin cited various studies showing that more lives can be saved by using established and innovative malaria control tools, including access to effective prevention, accurate diagnosis and prompt and reliable treatment.

The WHO official particularly cited the use of insecticide-treated mosquito nets as a simple and cost-effective tool, which has been proven to reduce child deaths by around 20 percent and malaria cases by half.

“Successful malaria control improves not only the health of people living in high-risk areas, but also their productivity and overall well-being,” said Shin.

He also stressed the need for  governments to ensure that their national malaria programs provide their population wide access to life-saving and inexpensive interventions.

Malaria is caused by parasites that are transmitted to people through bites of an infected mosquito. Shin said one of the challenges to malaria-control in the Western Pacific was the artemisinin-resistant falciparum malaria.

The WHO official reported that while efforts to contain the artemisinin resistance on the Cambodia-Thailand border have been successful, the same resistance was being discovered in other areas of the Greater Mekong sub-region.