Every year, nearly one million people die from malaria and 250 million suffer from its effects simply because they lack the resources to protect themselves.
Malaria treatment accounts for nearly 40% of African public health spending and a quarter of all household budgets across the continent.
Malaria Facts
• 247 million cases annually worldwide
• 86% of cases in Africa
• 1 million deaths annually
• 91% of deaths in Africa
• 85 % of deaths children under 5
The tragedy behind these statistics is that malaria prevention is easy and affordable. Sleeping under a mosquito net significantly decreases the risk of malaria. Nets cost only $10 each and can last up to 5 years.
Africa’s Biggest Child Killer Can Be Stopped
In east and southern Africa malaria is the number one killer of African children under the age of five and the cause of nearly 30% of the deaths of pregnant women.
New research also suggests people with HIV are twice as likely to catch malaria. Sub-Saharan African countries have the highest HIV/AIDS rates in the world, making a vulnerable population even more susceptible.
Preventing malaria is one of AMREF’s top priorities.
AMREF’s largest anti-malaria projects are in Uganda and Ethiopia. Both countries have some of the world’s highest infection rates.
AMREF workers educate communities on the causes, prevention methods, symptoms and treatment of the disease. Programs target pregnant women and young children (because they have vulnerable immune systems) while bringing health care services as close to high-risk rural communities as possible.
AMREF’s malaria programs have saved thousands of lives through education, training of health workers and distribution of malaria nets. But there are many more people who need help.
AMREF SUCCESS: Fighting Malaria with Nomadic Communities
For nearly 5 years AMREF has been working in Afar, a remote area of north eastern Ethiopia. Only two hospitals serve the region’s 1.3 million people, whose literacy rate is only seven percent.
But through the support of donors and with the help of local AMREF staff, there have been remarkable health improvements in Afar’s communities:
• 145,000 mosquito nets have been distributed to 72,500 homes
• The number of children under 5 using mosquito nets has increased by 67%
• The number of pregnant women using mosquito nets has increased by 60%
• 200 health workers have been trained on malaria prevention and treatment
The United Nations is now replicating this innovative AMREF program in other communities across the region.
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