23 September 2008
As part of moves towards ensuring that the world is on the brink of eliminating malaria, Vanguard's Good Health Weekly is participating in a special global teleconference even as leading figures from government, business and civil society gather in New York to highlight how close the world is to ending malaria deaths by the target date of 2015.
The teleconference which holds today with Ray Chambers, UN Special Envoy for Malaria, is aimed at providing detailed background about an unprecedented international effort to eliminate virtually all malaria-related deaths in Africa.
Details of the effort are to be announced on September 25 in conjunction with the United Nations Millennium Development Goals Summit, which is a high-level event convened by the UN Secretary-General and the President of the UN General Assembly to renew commitments to achieving the Millennium Development Goals by 2015 and to set out concrete plans and practical steps for action.
It was noted that September 25 will mark the release of the Global Malaria Action Plan: the first comprehensive blueprint for global malaria control and elimination. The Roll Back Malaria (RBM) Partnership created the Plan through consultation with more than 250 experts from malaria-endemic countries and international organizations from fields as diverse as economics, public health and epidemiology.
Chambers will host an event on September 25 to present and discuss the Plan, and will be joined by Mr. Bill Gates, African Heads of State, senior officials from the United Nations and the British Government, corporate CEOs, and leaders of NGOs.
A report released by the World Health Organization (WHO) said progress in malaria control has accelerated dramatically since 2006, particularly in the wake of the Secretary-General's call for universal malaria control coverage by the end of 2010.
Implications of the Global Malaria Action Plan are far-reaching. Chambers will host a special event which will see the announcement of increased funding and additional partnerships to tackle malaria and help achieve the 2010 and 2015 goals.
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