Achieving Progress and Impact - this is the theme for World Malaria Day 2011 which falls on 25 April the day marked and set aside to create awareness about this disease. The UN is taking the crucial first step to reaching the international Millennium Development Goals target of reducing malaria deaths to near zero by 2015.
According to Dr.P.G.Mahipala, Additional Secretary to the Health Ministry a special programme has been commenced to eradicate Malaria from Sri Lanka by year 2015. The Health Ministry stated that the cooperation of the public is vital for the prevention of Malaria as well as diseases like Dengue and Filaria which are being spread by mosquitoes.
The key facts about malaria are that approximately half of the world's population is at risk of malaria. It infects more than 500 million people per year and kills more than 1 million and over 90% of all deaths related to malaria occur in Africa alone.
This year’s theme alerts that, time has come for examining the progress that we have made towards malaria control and to renew efforts towards achieving the target of zero malaria deaths by 2015.
Sri Lanka reached the milestone of zero reported malaria deaths in 2009. Apparently if we make every effort, Sri Lanka could achieve the MDG target of zero malaria deaths by 2015.
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