Officially declaring the meeting open, Minister Badjie said the government of The Gambia is highly committed to malaria control and prevention, as it is an active member of all regional and sub-regional networks. She added that The Gambia coordinates the malaria component of the Health for Peace Malaria Initiative (HIP) and is also the current alternate roll back malaria board member in the sub-region.
She noted that the meeting will also avail WARN countries and partners the opportunity to critically review progress, share experiences and best practices as a malaria community. “This meeting will further give chance to all stakeholders in the fight against Malaria to take stock of the progress made by respective countries towards the implementation of the road maps and towards achieving their set targets and it will also accord them the opportunity to share success stories and best practices in the fight against malaria,” she added.
She disclosed that currently, there are compelling advances in malaria endemic countries but with support from international partners, malaria cases and deaths have reduced and hundreds of thousands of lives have been saved across the continent. She disclosed that in The Gambia, research in 2008 showed a general decline in malaria incidence in the country by 85% and admission due to malaria also dropped by 74%. She noted that malaria attributable deaths have also dropped by 90%. The Health minister then called on the international community to ensure sustainable funding to meet the targets for malaria control as part of the drive to reach the health-related MDGs by 2015.
Speaking earlier, the Programme manager of the National Malaria Control Programme of The Gambia, Mrs Adam Jagne -Sonko said today, many countries in Africa including The Gambia are attaining higher coverage of their populations with effective malaria control interventions. She stress that the will to sustain the gains countries have made in malaria must not only come from global health leaders, but also from communities. She opined that if communities can know the true burden of malaria and can see the results of prevention and control efforts, then the will to eliminate malaria and ultimate eradication of malaria will never fade.
Other speakers at the occasion included the director general of the West African Health Organisation (WAHO) Dr Placido Cardoso and WHO representative in The Gambia, Dr Thomas Sukwa.
Momodou Fall Observer reports.
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