Malaria Control Efforts Will Cost Pakistan $62.5M, Health Officials Say
The Pakistani Ministry of Health's Directorate of Malaria Control on Sunday said efforts to control malaria in 56 high-risk districts would cost the country $62.5 million over five years, the Daily Times reports.
The 56 districts targeted for the program were identified by the DMC in 2007 as highly malaria-endemic areas. The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria will provide about $21.5 million to provide malaria control efforts in 19 of the 56 districts, while the remaining $41 million needed to implement the program in the other 37 districts will come from other international donors and local government agencies, according to the Times. According to an unnamed senior health ministry official, the Global Fund support helped initiate new case management strategies, prevention measures and best practices. The official added that Global Fund grants would help the country introduce rapid diagnostic tests for malaria in the 19 high-risk districts.
In addition, the Pakistani government has set aside 661 million Pakistani rupees, or about $8.4 million, for the National Rollback Malaria Program over the next five years. The program -- which aims to reduce Pakistan's malaria burden by 50% by 2010 and 75% by 2015 -- will require approval from the executive committee of the National Economic Council before implementation.
According to health officials, the current number of confirmed malaria cases in Pakistan is about 130,000, with an additional 3.5 million suspected cases. Morbidity and mortality associated with malaria also are increasing in the country. According to officials in the health ministry, seasonal variations, drought, irrigation systems, water systems, population movements and drug-resistant parasites account for the high malaria prevalence in the identified districts. In addition, many people in these districts lack access to early diagnosis, prevention and treatment measures, the Times reports (Achakzai, Daily Times, 10/13).
