In accordance with the “World Malaria Report 2020” released by World Health Organisation (WHO), India recorded the largest reduction of malaria cases in South-East Asia from 20 million in 2000 to about 5.6 million in 2019.
- On the global front, there were about 229 million malaria cases in 2019 and claimed about 409,000 lives, compared to 411,000 in 2018.
Indian Highlights:
–India showed a reduction in cases and deaths of 18% and 20%, respectively, over the last 2 years.
–India also recorded a decrease in the number of deaths from malaria between 2000 and 2019 i.e. it declined from about 29,500 in 2000 to about 7700 in 2019.
–Instead of the above mentioned decline, India still accounted for 88% of malaria cases and 86% of malaria deaths in the WHO South-East Asia Region in 2019.
Key Points:
–WHO South-East Asia Region accounted for about 3% of the burden of malaria cases globally. The region saw a reduction by 73%, from 23 million in 2000 to about 6.3 million in 2019.
–The death cases due to malaria are also reduced in South-East Asia by 74%, from about 35,000 in 2000 to 9,000 in 2019.
— In the African Region, since 2000, there is reduction in malaria death toll by 44%, from an estimated 680,000 to 384,000 annually.
–The 11 highest burden countries account for 70% of the global estimated case burden and 71% of global estimated deaths from malaria.
- These are Burkina Faso, Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, India, Mali, Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria, Uganda and the United Republic of Tanzania.
–There is a funding shortfall for curbing this disease. In 2019, total funding reached USD 3 billion against a global target of USD 5.6 billion.
Recent Related News:
i.On October 5, 2020, Union Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) virtually chaired the 5th Special Session of Bureau of the Executive Board as Chairman of the Executive Board of the WHO. Harsh Vardhan is the chair of the WHO Executive Board.
ii.According to the Global Tuberculosis Report 2020 released by WHO, there has been a 25 to 30 % drop in Tuberculosis (TB) case notification across three high-burden countries – India, Indonesia and Philippines between January-June 2020.
About World Health Organization (WHO):
Director General– Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus
Headquarter– Geneva, Switzerland
