A newly-developed microscope, complete with ready-to-use malaria test slides, on display at the malaria conference in Nairobi. (Photo Courtesy Hezron Njoroge/Nation)

Nairobi — Vice-President Kalonzo Musyoka on Sunday urged governments and donors to increase funding for research and control in order to eradicate malaria.

The VP said that sustainable funding was the surest way that would aid the world to eradicate the disease.

Mr Musyoka said that they was need to come up with better ways of dealing with resistance to malaria medicine.

"I encourage African governments and our development partners to honour their commitments so that we can eliminate this scourge without which economic growth and development will greatly be curtailed especially in the African tropics," Mr Musyoka said.

He was speaking when he opened a week long conference on malaria that brings together 2,000 researchers, health workers, public health officials and policymakers from around the world.