On World Malaria Day, UN officials push for near zero preventable deaths
April 26, 2014: The tide has turned on malaria, with mortality rates for children
in Africa down by half, but a stronger surveillance system is urgently needed to prevent
new outbreaks and resurgences, United Nations officials today warned, marking the
sixth annual World Malaria Day. “We must stay focused until the job is done,” said
Ray Chambers, UN Special Envoy for Malaria. “The world has an ethical obligation to
continue to protect the hundreds of millions of children who have slept safely under
a bed net and who have had access to treatment.” Child deaths from malaria declined
from one million in 2008 to under 500,000 thanks to a community of malaria supporters
who delivered nearly 44 million long-lasting mosquito nets in the first-quarters of
this year alone, Mr. Chambers said. In his remarks on the Day, UN Secretary-General
Ban Ki-moon said: “While we applaud progress to date, we must confront the fact that
malaria still kills more than half a million people every year. Too many cases still
go untested, unregistered and untreated.”