Learning from El Salvador’s Malaria Free Achievement

For several years now there had been talks about eradicating malaria in Africa. However, some skeptics did not think it was possible. Malaria continues to be a major public health problem in Africa. It’s a very common disease in Africa and the largest killer of children under five according to the World Health Organization (WHO) [1].

Malaria is caused by the Plasmodium parasite and contracted through the bites of the infected female Anopheles mosquitoes [1, 2]. Anyone who was born and raised in Africa has been bitten by these mosquitoes and eventually hospitalized because of malaria. Even with mosquito nets on most window frames and treated mosquito nets in bedrooms, malaria cases are still rising in Africa. It is just unavoidable.

At the moment RTS, S (Mosquirix) is the only vaccine that has shown some efficacy in young African children aged 6 weeks to 17 months [1]. Ghana, Kenya, and Malawi are the 3 African countries participating in the pilot program to determine the effectiveness of the vaccine [1]. Researchers have been working and still working on this to get the right efficacy for other age groups. If Africans can get a vaccine for malaria it would be a huge relief for so many.

El Salvador was certified malaria-free on February 25th by the WHO [2]. This is a huge achievement and they deserve all the recognition. However, they encountered some challenges along the way. Mosquitoes developed resistance to DDT and an expansion in the country’s cotton industry incited the rise in malaria cases [2]. Despite these challenges, they were able to reach their goal. So, how did El Salvador do it? And what can African countries learn from this?

Firstly, with consistent and adequate domestic funding, the government was able to build permanent drains in swamps and sprayed pesticide DDT indoors [2]. This funding’s also aided with establishing a National Malaria Program (CNAP) where they recruited a network of 3000 community health workers, 276 vector control personnel, built 247 laboratories, nurses, doctors, management teams, volunteers, and epidemiologists [2].

This recruited personnel had roles in detecting, treating, registering, and entering data into health information systems across the country [2]. Lastly, El Salvador joined some global and regional initiatives such as the E-2020, Regional Malaria Elimination, and PAHO Elimination Initiatives. Where they collaborated, shared innovations, and best practices to eliminate malaria [2].

In short, the moral of the story is that without the dedication, collaboration with various sectors, and consistent domestic funding eliminating malaria from Africa might be far-fetched. African governments can not continue to rely solely on resources from international donors to implement and sustain their programs. My dear Africans, eradicating malaria is not just a mere dream anymore.

It is a reality and El Salvador just proved the skeptics wrong.