El Salvador Becomes Malaria-free

In News: El Salvador has officially been declared malaria-free by the World Health Organization (WHO) after no reports of new indigenous cases of the disease since 2017.

• The country is the first in Central America to achieve the WHO’s malaria-free certification status and third in the Americas overall after Argentina in 2019 and Paraguay in 2018.
• Around half of the world’s population is at risk of malaria, particularly those living in lower-income countries and in the Americas, 765,000 cases were reported in 2018.
  • Countries like El Salvador “are living proof and inspiration” for all.
  • Despite the Corona Pandemic, El Salvador maintained Zero Malaria Cases.

Malaria Free Status

• Globally, 38 countries and territories have achieved malaria-free status.
• It is a WHO certification for which countries can apply for when there have been no local cases for three consecutive years.
• India is yet to attain Malaria free status.
  • India has a target to eliminate Malaria by 2030.
• Certification is different from elimination.
  • A country can only be certified, if it has proven beyond reasonable doubt that it has had zero local malaria transmission for three years or more.
  • Eg. China has had no indigenous malaria cases for the third year and has also made the formal request for certification.
  • In 2019, Belize and Cabo Verde reported zero indigenous malaria cases for the first time since 2000.

Global Picture

• Malaria is one of the world’s leading killers, with more than 200 million cases and over 400,000 deaths each year, despite being preventable and curable if diagnosed early.
• It also takes its economic toll, cutting economic growth rates by as much as 1.3 per cent in countries with high burden rates, according to WHO figures.
• But good news is continuous shrinkage of the malaria map.
  • For instance, in 2015, the World Health Assembly adopted the global technical strategy for malaria, with milestones for 2020, 2025 and 2030.
    • The 15 year strategy set a target to reduce the global malaria cases and mortality rates by at least 90 per cent by 2030.
  • According to the World Malaria Report 2020, 1.5 billion malaria cases and 7.6 million malaria-related deaths have been averted since the year 2000.

Local, regional and global collaboration

• E-2020: Group of 21 countries identified in 2016 that had potential to eliminate malaria by 2020.
  • El Salvador worked hard as its member despite the financial crunch.
  • The country deployed a community-based approach, complemented by collaboration with neighbouring countries to help prevent malaria from crossing country borders
• New country-driven approach  titled “High burden to high impact” was launched by WHO in countries where malaria cases increased in 2018 as compared to 2017.

Indian Initiatives

• National Framework for Malaria Elimination 2016: It was framed by India on the lines of Global Technical Strategy for Malaria, 2016-2030 of WHO.
• National Strategic Plan for Malaria Elimination (NSPME) (2017-22): Based on the National Framework, India launched a plan for malaria elimination.
  • It gives year wise elimination targets in various parts of the country depending upon the endemicity of malaria in the next 5 years.
• Malaria Elimination Research Alliance, India (MERA-India): It was established by Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).
  • It is a conglomeration of partners working on malaria control.
• Odisha’s Durgama Anchalare Malaria Nirakaran (DAMaN) Initiative:  Aims to deliver services to the most inaccessible and hardest hit people of the State.
  • The initiative has in-built innovative strategies to combat asymptomatic malaria.

Source: DTE