Malaria Day 2010

World Malaria day was observed on Sunday with the theme ‘counting malaria out’ which aims to intensify global efforts to reach important milestones set by the Global Malaria Action Plan (GMAP).
There are more than 200 million cases of malaria every year, causing almost 1 million deaths worldwide. Today, there are 109 malarious countries in 4 regions

It is a day for recognizing the global effort to provide effective control of malaria. The burden of malaria is heaviest in sub-Saharan Africa but the disease also afflicts Asia, Latin America, the Middle East and even parts of Europe.

The Day provides opportunity for countries in the affected regions to learn from each other’s experiences and support each other’s efforts; for new donors to join a global partnership against malaria; for research and academic institutions to flag their scientific advances to both experts and general public; and for international partners, companies and foundations to showcase their efforts and reflect on how to scale up what has worked.

World Malaria Day represents a chance for all of us to make a difference. Whether you are a government, a company, a charity or an individual, you can roll back malaria and help generate broad gains in multiple areas of health and human development.

Reducing the impact of malaria would significantly propel efforts to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, agreed by every United Nations member state. These include not only the goal of combating the disease itself, but also goals related to women’s and children’s rights and health, access to education and the reduction of extreme poverty. This is the Day to mobilise civil society in the fight against malaria.