This year’s World Malaria Day falls at a time when COVID-19 pandemic has engulfed the world, straining health systems and rapidly increasing demand on health facilities and health care workers, threatening to leave health systems overstretched and unable to operate effectively. Previous outbreaks have demonstrated that when health systems are overwhelmed, mortality from preventable and treatable conditions can also increase dramatically.
Recognizing the heavy toll that malaria exacts on vulnerable populations, as well as the fragility of health infrastructure in some areas in the region, WHO underlines the critical importance of sustaining efforts to prevent, detect and treat malaria.
The theme of this year’s World Malaria Day celebration, “Zero malaria starts with me”, emphasizes the critical need for everyone to ensure that malaria elimination remains high on the agenda, especially as we combat COVID-19.
For more information :
Message by Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, WHO Regional Director for South-East Asia, on World Malaria Day 2020
More on World Malaria Day 2020
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