Philippines Increases Malaria Control Budget to $1.4M, Health Official Says
The Philippines' Department of Health will increase its budget for malaria control efforts to 63 million Philippine pesos, or about $1.4 million, this year, up from 3.2 million Philippine pesos, or about $69,000, last year, Yolanda Oliveros, director of the National Center for Disease Prevention and Control, said recently, the Thai News Service reports Oliveros was speaking at the Philippine launch of the Global Malaria Action Plan, which was released last week during the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Meeting on the United Nations Millennium Development Goals in New York. Most of the funding will be provided by international donors, Oliveros said.
Oliveros added that she hopes the department's malaria control budget will increase to 170 million Philippine pesos, or about $3.7 million, in 2009. According to Oliveros, the government will work with nongovernmental organizations, corporate partners and international groups to eliminate malaria in the Philippines in the next five to ten years. Officials have trained health workers to conduct rapid diagnostic tests and use microscopes to diagnose malaria, particularly in outlying districts, Oliveros said, adding that sufficient funding would help strengthen early diagnosis, treatment, surveillance, advocacy, health promotion and social mobilization for the disease (Thai News Service, 9/29).
According to Oliveros, malaria is endemic in 59 of the Philippine's 81 provinces and is highly endemic in seven of the 59 provinces. She said that 22 provinces are malaria-free and that the health department plans to increase that number, adding that the department's "goal is to eliminate malaria from the Philippines by 2020." She added that although the country recorded a 2.4% increase in malaria cases in 2007, it is on track to meet its goal of eradicating the disease by 2020.
The Philippines recorded 35,405 malaria cases in 2006, down from 59,000 recorded cases in 2000. In addition, the number of malaria deaths decreased by 24% from 2005 to 2006, GMA News reports (GMA News, 9/25).
