Employ African-led innovation to eliminate malaria — Dep Minister of Health

THE Deputy Minister of Health, Prof. Dr Grace Ayensu-Danquah, has called for bold African-led innovation and stronger bilateral partnerships to eliminate malaria.

She made the remarks at a regional workshop organised by Sora Technology in collaboration with the National Malaria Elimination Programme (NMEP) in Accra last week. The event was held under the theme: “From Mapping to Action: Tech-enabled LSM for Malaria Elimination.”

The two-day workshop brought together participants from 13 African countries to share experiences and leverage best practices to eliminate malaria in the region. The countries represented were Ghana, Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Cameroon, Mali, Benin, Tanzania, Ethiopia, South Sudan, and Zimbabwe.

Prof. Ayensu-Danquah emphasised the need for Africa to shift from aid dependency to health sovereignty, stating:

“Behind every statistic is a child missing school, a family losing income, and a health worker managing a preventable emergency.”

She highlighted that malaria remains a major global public health threat, claiming 610,000 lives in 2024, with a $5.4 billion annual funding gap for malaria control—only 42 per cent of required resources are currently available. She warned that declining international assistance underscores the urgency for domestic resource mobilisation.

At the national level, Ghana recorded 74 malaria-related deaths in 2024, down from 146 the previous year, surpassing its target of 95 deaths. Since 2012, malaria mortality has declined by 97 per cent. Under the National Malaria Strategic Plan (2024–2028), Ghana aims to reduce malaria deaths by 90 per cent, cut incidence by 50 per cent, and eliminate the disease in 21 districts within Greater Accra.

The Director-General of the Ghana Health Service, Dr Samuel Kaba Akoriyea, in a speech read on his behalf, described the event as a “transformative moment” in Ghana’s malaria response. Citing the World Health Organization (WHO), he noted that 282 million malaria cases were recorded globally in 2024, with Africa bearing 95 per cent of the burden.

Although investments since 2000 have averted an estimated 2.3 billion cases and 14 million deaths, Dr Akoriyea expressed concern that progress has slowed, with global incidence still far above the 2025 target. He also warned about the detection in 2023 of the invasive Anopheles stephensi mosquito in Accra, cautioning that up to 126 million additional Africans could be at risk if it spreads further.

He emphasised that malaria elimination is not only a public health priority but also an economic imperative, noting estimates from the RBM Partnership to End Malaria that eradicating malaria could boost Africa’s GDP by up to $127 billion.

“This is about our children’s future and our collective capacity to confront shared challenges,” the Service stated.

Central to discussions was the resurgence of Larval Source Management (LSM), now strengthened by drone mapping and artificial intelligence (AI). A pilot project in Kwabirem District, conducted with the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research and SORA Technology, showed that drone-assisted mapping identified more than three times the breeding sites found through conventional methods, while AI classification reduced field verification needs by over 50 per cent.

Cost comparisons presented at the forum indicated that LSM could protect individuals at between 24 and 44 cents per person, compared to about $6.70 per person for indoor residual spraying.

By Esinam Jemima Kuatsinu