The Ministry of Health (MoH) is pressing ahead with its plans to eliminate malaria by 2030.
A MoH release on Tuesday stated that Minister of Health, Dr Frank Anthony during a recent visit to Region Nine, had announced that the Ministry will be developing a comprehensive regional plan in 2025 to eliminate malaria in the region, in collaboration with Harvard University of the USA.
Anthony reminded that malaria remains a prevalent infectious disease in the area, and as such, requires urgent action.
“The programme is not to control malaria, because we have been trying to do that all along. We are now trying to eliminate it from this region. In January, we have a team coming from Harvard University to this region, they will be accompanied by our ministry,” he disclosed.
The minister acknowledged the challenges of past efforts but was optimistic that the upcoming plan, rooted in modern scientific approaches, would yield success.
“We will be using modern scientific techniques to develop this plan. We are extremely confident that we will be able to eliminate malaria in this region. We look forward to working with you during this process.”
The release noted that over the years, the MoH has been working aggressively to eliminate various diseases across the country such as lymphatic filariasis, tuberculosis (TB), and dengue, in an effort to eliminate these diseases by 2030. In July of this year, the ministry launched a filaria campaign targeting regions Three and Four.
These efforts are backed by tangible results, as several diseases have already been eradicated in other regions.
MoH also stated that the $129.8 billion allocated to the health sector in the 2024 budget is indicative of government’s commitment to implementing disease elimination strategies and bolstering healthcare systems.
