CA asks int'l community to develop better technology to control Malaria
Saturday, 27 September 2008
NEW YORK, Sep 26 (UNB): Bangladesh urged the developed countries to ensure access to essential malaria medicines through transfer of technology to deal with the deadly and complex disease, Malaria.
Chief Adviser Dr Fakhruddin Ahmed made the call Thursday while addressing a high-level gathering organised by a special envoy of the UN Secretary General for Malaria at the Millennium Plaza Hotel.
He said the international community must also increase investment in developing new improved technologies for controlling malaria, especially for effective drugs, insecticides and vaccines.
He noted that malaria is a complex and deadly disease. Approximately, 40 per cent of the world's population-mostly living in LDCs-is at risk of malaria. Almost half a billion people catch the disease each year. More than a million die.
Malaria remains a disease of the poor. Though it is an epidemic in many regions of the world, Sub-Saharan Africa remains the hardest hit. "Malaria costs us tens of billions of dollars in lost productivity. In countries where the disease is particularly acute, it consumes as much as 40 per cent of government health budgets. This has a crippling effect on economic growth, welfare and development. Some countries have achieved great success in eradicating the disease. Most of the affected countries, however, remain off track," the CA told the function.
He congratulated the Secretary General on his taking initiative to ensure universal coverage by the end of 2010. This is no doubt a significant undertaking.
He said Bangladesh too faces the wrath of malaria. "We have over 60,000 confirmed cases, with about 500 deaths annually. Out of 64 districts in Bangladesh, 13 are highly endemic with 10.9 million people at risk."
Referring to malaria-eradication programme in the 1960s in Bangladesh and witnessing some success in its retreat, he said the disease reappeared in the 1980s in epidemic proportions.
"Our experience has shown that successful efforts by one country would not be enough to eradicate the disease. We must have combined and sustained efforts at sub-regional, regional and global levels to permanently eliminate this scourge."
He said a national programme is being implemented to reduce malaria morbidity and mortality until the disease is no longer a public health problem. Bangladesh endorsed the World Declaration on the Malaria Control and the Revised Malaria Control Strategy (RMCS), derived from the Amsterdam Meeting in 1992.
"Our goal is to provide early diagnosis and prompt treatment with effective drugs to 90 per cent of all malaria patients and effective malaria prevention to 100 per cent of the population at risk in high-endemic districts.
"We are also taking steps to strengthen malaria epidemiological surveillance system and establish Rapid Response Teams at national and district levels to prevent outbreaks of the disease," he said.
Chief Adviser Dr Fakhruddin Ahmed made the call Thursday while addressing a high-level gathering organised by a special envoy of the UN Secretary General for Malaria at the Millennium Plaza Hotel.
He said the international community must also increase investment in developing new improved technologies for controlling malaria, especially for effective drugs, insecticides and vaccines.
He noted that malaria is a complex and deadly disease. Approximately, 40 per cent of the world's population-mostly living in LDCs-is at risk of malaria. Almost half a billion people catch the disease each year. More than a million die.
Malaria remains a disease of the poor. Though it is an epidemic in many regions of the world, Sub-Saharan Africa remains the hardest hit. "Malaria costs us tens of billions of dollars in lost productivity. In countries where the disease is particularly acute, it consumes as much as 40 per cent of government health budgets. This has a crippling effect on economic growth, welfare and development. Some countries have achieved great success in eradicating the disease. Most of the affected countries, however, remain off track," the CA told the function.
He congratulated the Secretary General on his taking initiative to ensure universal coverage by the end of 2010. This is no doubt a significant undertaking.
He said Bangladesh too faces the wrath of malaria. "We have over 60,000 confirmed cases, with about 500 deaths annually. Out of 64 districts in Bangladesh, 13 are highly endemic with 10.9 million people at risk."
Referring to malaria-eradication programme in the 1960s in Bangladesh and witnessing some success in its retreat, he said the disease reappeared in the 1980s in epidemic proportions.
"Our experience has shown that successful efforts by one country would not be enough to eradicate the disease. We must have combined and sustained efforts at sub-regional, regional and global levels to permanently eliminate this scourge."
He said a national programme is being implemented to reduce malaria morbidity and mortality until the disease is no longer a public health problem. Bangladesh endorsed the World Declaration on the Malaria Control and the Revised Malaria Control Strategy (RMCS), derived from the Amsterdam Meeting in 1992.
"Our goal is to provide early diagnosis and prompt treatment with effective drugs to 90 per cent of all malaria patients and effective malaria prevention to 100 per cent of the population at risk in high-endemic districts.
"We are also taking steps to strengthen malaria epidemiological surveillance system and establish Rapid Response Teams at national and district levels to prevent outbreaks of the disease," he said.