Malaria remains a threat to under-fives, pregnant women
National Malaria Control Programme has said malaria remains the major cause of death among under-five children and pregnant women in the country.
National Malaria Control Programme (NMCP) manager in Ministry of Health Michael Kayange said this in Lilongwe on Friday during a press briefing marking Southern Africa Development Community (Sadc) Malaria Week and the commemoration of Malaria Day.
He noted that malaria accounts for 40 percent of all admissions in the country’s health facilities while 30 percent are being treated as outpatients.
Kayange said this is having a negative impact on the country’s economy as people are spending time caring for patients instead of engaging in economic activities.
“Malaria is a burden and it needs a collective approach to fight it so that the prevalence rate can be reduced and save resources for the country,” he said.
Kayange noted that the prevalence rate has reduced from 33 percent in 2014 to 24 percent in 2016 due the interventions that government has put in place in the fight against the disease.
World Vision Malawi project officer Alexander Chikonga said they are working with government to fight malaria in the country.
He said they have providing capacity building for over 1 400 health surveillance assistants (HSAs) in malaria case management at community levels. n
