Zambia Leads the Way

Oct 17th, 2007 9:28 AM EST
By ONE.Partners

Tuesday to Thursday this week, Malaria No More’s Martin Edlund is live blogging from the Gates Foundation’s Malaria Forum in Seattle.

Perhaps no country in sub-Saharan Africa is being quite so closely scrutinized as Zambia. Landlocked and malaria endemic, it is an ideal proving ground for what’s possible in malaria control.

It’s difficult to exaggerate the role malaria plays in daily life in the country. Nearly 20 percent of Zambian children do’’t reach their 5th birthday, and malaria is the single biggest reason why. There are 4 million reported malaria cases in the country each year, and an estimated 50,000 deaths due to the disease.

Roadside billboards warn about the threat of malaria on the way to and from the airport; Boy Scout troops get merit badges for their knowledge of the disease. In some provinces, as many as 1/3 of all children are sick with the disease at any one time.

But these alarming stats only make the country’s recent turnaround all the more impressive.

Zambia will distribute 3 million insecticide-treated nets by the end of year, putting it on track to reach its goal of 80% coverage by 2008; 62% of pregnant women received preventative treatment nationwide; and indoor residual spraying (IRS) of insecticides has reached 85% coverage in 15 target districts, protecting 250,000 structures (or 1.5 million people).

Part of what sets Zambia apart is the quality of its data. Thanks to its partnership with the Gates-funded MACEPA project, Zambia is able to go beyond mere distribution figures to measure real impact.

Minister Chituwo shared some of the results at the opening session of the Gates Forum. Children 5 and under living in households with two or more mosquito nets had 38% fewer cases of fever, 51% less malaria infection, and 30% less severe anemia than those in houses without mosquito nets or IRS, he reported. “Immediately we have been able to see the numbers of children in hospitals declining.”

Far from satisfied, Minister Chituwo challenged the Gates audience to go further. “If these results are showing success, it is a matter of aiming higher,” he said. “80 percent [coverage] by 2008, with the help we are having surely we can do better. Why not 100 percent?”

-Martin Edlund, Malaria No More

Malaria No More’s mission is simple: no more deaths from malaria. Learn more and help prevent a million child deaths this year by donating a $10 bed net at www.MalariaNoMore.org.

TAGS: Gates Crashing Live Blog, Malaria, Malaria No More