At World Malaria Day commemoration: Health minister calls for collective effort to combat disease.

He was speaking during a ceremony to commemorate this year’s World Malaria Day. 

Speaking during a presser to the Public Health Emergency Operations Coordination Centre in Yaounde, the minister said more can be achieve through a united front.

The global theme of the World Malaria Day was: “Accelerating the fight against malaria for a more equitable world”. 

Meanwhile, Cameroon observed the day under the theme: “Gender, Health Equity and Human Rights”.

The member of government, during the press conference, noted that the 6th National Strategic Plan to combat malaria aims to ensure a universal and equitable access to the most effective interventions for the prevention and management of malaria.

This, he said, the government is committed to achieve by ensuring it is done at affordable rates, reaching out to the most vulnerable and underprivileged.

He also urged local and regional councils to take ownership of interventions under community guidelines. Dr Manouda said councils must support multi-purpose community health workers.

The private sector, he also said, plays a key role in the multi-sector collaboration to combat malaria. 

According to Dr Manaouda, government is in need of over FCFA 369 billion to combat malaria but till date, only 149,983,394,010 FCFA has been mobilised. 

The financial gap in the fight against the disease for the period 2024-2028, the minister stated, stands at over 186 billion FCFA, representing 55% of the needs expressed. He called for continuous mobilisation to raise the needed resources.

Importance of funding anti-malaria drive

“Funding for the fight against malaria in Cameroon will ensure the availability of inputs at all levels, for effective and rapid treatment of all confirmed cases of malaria, not only in health facilities but also in the community via multi-purpose community health workers,” Dr Manaouda stated. 

He urged all healthcare providers to deliver services to all without discrimination, taking gender into account and in complete equity. 

He also insisted that such must be done in strict compliance with the directives and policies of free healthcare for the most disadvantaged group of persons. 

Children under the age of five and pregnant women, he said, must be given priority as outlined in phase I of the Universal Health Coverage, UHC, campaign.

Situation of malaria in Cameroon

Data from health facilities across the country, the minister said, show that in 2023, the country recorded 2,977,754 malaria patients. 

This, he said, represented 28% of consultations while there where 1,243,053 admissions linked to malaria.

Deaths due to malaria in the same year, the minister said, stand at 1,756, or 7% of all deaths recorded in the country. 

“These figures show a downward trend compared with previous years. In particular, the number of deaths fell by 29% between 2022 and 2023,” the minister stated. 

According to the member of government, children under the age of five and pregnant women are the target groups most affected by malaria as some1200 cases of malaria were recorded among children.  

These statistics, he regretted, keep Cameroon among the 11 countries most affected by malaria in the world.

Difficulties faced in the fight 

He went on to explain that one of the bottlenecks in effective management of the disease in the country is the inadequate use of Pyrethroid-treated long-lasting insecticidal nets, LLINs, by households. 

Surveys, he hammed, shows that only 68% of households that have these protection nets actually use them. 

“There is also insufficient use of antenatal consultation services, which limits access to preventive treatment for pregnant women as 51% receive at least three doses of intermittent preventive treatment,” Dr Manaouda said.

In addition to all these, he added that the late recourse to treatment by families in the event of fever, and insufficient compliance with malaria management guidelines by certain healthcare providers, among other things further hampers the situation.

Some mosquitoes resistant to insecticides

The crusade against malaria, Minister Manaouda regretted, is taking place in a context marked by the emergence of mosquito resistant to insecticides. 

He also talked of the circulation in neighbouring countries of new invasive Anopheles species, in this case Anopheles Stephensis. This, among others, he said, are making the fight against the disease more complex.

He, however, sounded positive, that: “Nevertheless, the country has no intention of giving up, and efforts are continuing serenely on the ground, in accordance with the very high directives of the Head of State, His Excellency Paul Biya”.

Minister Manaouda cited the last ministerial conference of countries most affected by malaria which Cameroon hosted last March 6 and 7 as a show of such commitment to battle the disease.

The high-level conference ended with the Yaounde Declaration which contained among other points, calls for the strengthening of the political will; ensuring the use of information for strategic purposes; provision of the best technical guidance; and strengthening the coordination of multi-sectoral action against malaria.