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Nets boost Africa's malaria fight | Nets boost Africa's malaria fight |
(about 14 hours later) | |
Countries in sub-Saharan Africa are making significant progress in fighting malaria, new statistics from Unicef and the World Health Organisation show. | Countries in sub-Saharan Africa are making significant progress in fighting malaria, new statistics from Unicef and the World Health Organisation show. |
Distribution of mosquito nets, widely regarded as the most effective prevention against malaria, has grown substantially across the region. | Distribution of mosquito nets, widely regarded as the most effective prevention against malaria, has grown substantially across the region. |
In countries where they are used, malaria deaths have dropped by half. | |
But even with some progress, about 800,000 African children under five still die from malaria each year. | |
Sixteen of 20 sub-Saharan countries report that the number of children using the mosquito nets has tripled since 2000. | |
The new report from the UN children's fund reveals that since 2004 the annual production of bed nets has more than doubled, from 30 million to 63 million. | |
In Gambia, half of all children now have bed nets. | In Gambia, half of all children now have bed nets. |
Ethiopia has distributed 18m in the last two years alone. | Ethiopia has distributed 18m in the last two years alone. |
The report also finds that national health programmes in malaria-endemic countries have benefited from a tenfold increase in international funding in the last decade. | |
Drug shortage | |
But while Unicef and the WHO are pleased with the progress in preventative measures, the death toll among African children remains unchanged. | But while Unicef and the WHO are pleased with the progress in preventative measures, the death toll among African children remains unchanged. |
Every year, 800,000 African children under the age of five die from malaria. | |
Meanwhile, fewer children are receiving life-saving drugs if they do get malaria. | Meanwhile, fewer children are receiving life-saving drugs if they do get malaria. |
This is because most African countries have followed WHO advice and phased out older treatments which had become ineffective - but have not yet brought in the newer, more expensive malaria treatment drugs. | This is because most African countries have followed WHO advice and phased out older treatments which had become ineffective - but have not yet brought in the newer, more expensive malaria treatment drugs. |
But, the WHO says, increased production of the new treatments is now bringing prices down. | But, the WHO says, increased production of the new treatments is now bringing prices down. |
Since 2003, artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs) have become the norm for use in national health programmes, according to the Unicef report. | |
"Still, it's a minority of children that get access to the best types of antimalarials," the chief of global health for Unicef, Dr Peter Salama, said. | |
"But with the strong backing of some of the international donors and the price of ACTs starting to be reduced, I think governments are becoming more confident now that this will be a sustainable strategy for antimalaria treatment in the future," he added. |
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