THE UNENDING SCOURGE OF MALARIA

All the stakeholders should do more to ensure the disease is eradicated

Mosquitoes may be small, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), but they are responsible for spreading some of the deadliest diseases known to humankind. With Nigeria among the 11 countries that carry approximately 70 per cent of the global burden of malaria, the 2026 World Mosquito Day being marked today is another reminder to the health authorities in Nigeria that malaria is still one battle that needs to be won, even when gains have been made in recent years. Today also presents another opportunity for stakeholders to reflect on the 2024 Yaounde Declaration which expressed “unwavering commitment to the accelerated reduction of malaria mortality.”

  The World Mosquito Day commemorates the discovery made in 1897 by a British doctor, Ronald Ross, who identified pigmented malaria parasites inside the stomach tissue of a female Anopheles mosquito that had fed on an infected patient. It was his finding that proved, for the first time, that mosquitoes transmit malaria between humans. And Ross, then an army surgeon working in India, went on to win the Nobel Prize in 1902 for this discovery.

Authorities have at different times revealed that malaria contributes about 25 to 30 per cent of childhood mortality and about 60 per cent of hospital attendance in Nigeria. It is also a major cause of absenteeism in schools, markets, and workplaces, as well as a significant out-of-pocket expense for most households. And with the environmental conditions and associated ailments, which have all combined to make malaria a scourge for both the young and old, the statistics of death from the disease remain startling.

Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease. Symptoms typically include fever, fatigue, vomitting and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause yellow skin, seizures, coma, or death, as it is the case in Nigeria. Experts believe the number of Malaria death could be reduced drastically if Nigerians stopped embracing the disease as part of their lifestyle. Preventive measures include keeping a clean environment, removing stagnant water, consistent use of insecticide-treated nets, and proper diagnosis before treatment. Not only does malaria continue to directly endanger not only the health of the people, but it also perpetuates a vicious cycle of inequity.

However, the situation is not all bleaks. The World Bank has revealed that over the past decade, 11 African countries have reduced confirmed malaria cases by more than 50 per cent. The bank has also reported steady progress in Nigeria. The National Malaria Control Programme is moving to increase access to malaria prevention, treatment service, and community mobilisation so as to reduce the burden of the disease. However, combating Malaria requires multifaceted actions and partnerships involving public and private, international and civil society sectors.

In March 2024, the Yaounde Declaration was signed by Ministers of Health in Africa. The pledge is to provide stronger leadership and increased domestic funding for malaria control programmes. They also expressed their commitment “to hold each other and our countries accountable for the commitments outlined in this declaration.”  The federal government in 2023 approved the WHO-recommended R21/Matrix-M vaccine for the prevention of clinical malaria in children from five months to 36 months of age. It is adjudged to be 80 per cent effective.

To the extent that defeating malaria is critical to ending poverty and improving maternal and child health, Nigeria cannot afford to lag. As we join other countries to mark the 2026 World Mosquito Day, the hope is that health authorities will adopt the best possible strategy in dealing with the challenge.