Every April 25th, the global community comes together to recognize World Malaria Day. Typically it’s a time to celebrate progress and mobilize action.
This year, it comes at a time when people across the globe are working day and night to control COVID-19. While we should still celebrate progress made toward our shared goal of ending malaria–for evidence of that I refer you to the U.S. President’s Malaria Initiative’s 14th Annual Report to Congress–today serves as a reminder of why we must continue our collective efforts to combat malaria, even during this challenging time.
Why not scale back malaria programs until the COVID-19 crisis is over? Malaria is one of the world’s deadliest diseases. According to the most recent World Malaria Report, there were an estimated 228 million cases of malaria worldwide and 405,000 malaria-related deaths in 2018.
Malaria exacts a heavy toll on poor and vulnerable populations–particularly pregnant women and children in sub-Saharan Africa–and traps families in a vicious cycle of disease and poverty. It endangers the pregnancies of mothers and the health of newborns. It impedes economic development, threatens stability in affected countries, and endangers global health security.
What’s more, new modeling suggests that if malaria prevention campaigns are postponed and access to anti-malaria medicines is compromised by the COVID-19 pandemic, there will be dramatic increases in malaria cases and deaths. More people could die from malaria than from COVID-19, and already fragile health systems could quickly be overwhelmed.
To mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on malaria programming–with the safety of health workers and communities at the forefront–PMI has created technical guidance for its programs and is supporting partner countries to innovate and evolve their approaches to continue delivering proven malaria interventions during the COVID-19 pandemic. PMI also spearheaded the development of global guidelines for malaria interventions, and is working with the Global Fund, the RBM Partnership to End Malaria, and others to ensure robust and coordinated assistance for countries.
In response to the supply chain impact of COVID-19, PMI has been working closely with the Global Fund to identify impacted products and orders, prioritize country needs, and work with suppliers to ensure countries continue to receive life-saving malaria products. Recognizing that many systems used to deliver malaria prevention and treatment are the same systems needed to control COVID-19, PMI and the Global Fund are leveraging malaria platforms to bring additional support to countries that will protect health workers, patients, and communities from the risks of COVID-19.
Finally, PMI is actively monitoring the COVID-19 situation and government response in partner countries, and is in regular dialogue with ministries of health and national malaria control programs to determine the best and safest way forward during the rapidly evolving pandemic.
PMI remains committed to the people and communities we serve around the world during this difficult time. I want to thank our country counterparts, our global health and development partners, and the global malaria community for their tireless efforts. Together, we can protect the hard-fought gains made in the fight against malaria and contribute to the battle against COVID-19.
Stay safe,
Ken Staley, MD
U.S. Global Malaria Coordinator