Today the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Malaria Programme and the Roll Back Malaria Partnership (RBM) have launched a global plan to tackle emerging mosquito resistance to insecticides. WHO and RBM are urging affected countries and stakeholders to take action now. They want to make sure we can preserve the effectiveness of current mosquito control tools, such as long lasting insecticidal nets and sprays, and to ensure that a new generation of insecticides is available soon.

For more information on the Global Plan visit who.int/malaria

By Chris Lourenco from the Clinton Health Access Initiative

Dr Chan watches a patient being tested for malaria using a rapid diagnostic test kit during her hospital visit

25 April was World Malaria Day. We mark this day every year, but I am proud to say this year’s festivities were Namibia’s greatest. Celebrating the dramatic decline of malaria in Namibia and the shift in the country’s policy from controlling to trying to eliminate the disease, Dr Margaret Chan, the Director General of the World Health Organization, made her first visit to Namibia.

Namibia’s Minister of Health, Dr Richard Kamwi, helped encourage this visit, keen to display his country’s progress in the fight against malaria. Dr Chan praised his and Namibia’s efforts and success in this historic effort during her stay.

(c) Geoff Ward

A huge range of activity took place around the world in the last few days to mark World Malaria Day. It would be impossible to cover it all but we wanted to share some of the highlights!

Local and global leaders spoke out about the pressing need to maintain the momentum. Ban Ki-moon UN Secretary General issued a World Malaria Day message. with the news he is making malaria is a key priority for his second term. The Prime Minister spoke of the leadership role of the UK in the fight against malaria; and former Prime Minister

Sarah Kline, Ray Chambers & Alan Court

By Alan Court

I chair Roll Back Malaria’s Resource Mobilisation Committee which is charged with identifying where the funding will come from in the global fight against malaria. This week I have been in the UK to give evidence at two sessions at the House of Commons in Parliament on behalf of Roll Back Malaria.

The British Government is the second largest international donor for malaria – after the United States – and the support of Members of Parliament (MPs) is critical to helping ensure the British Government sustains its funding for malaria.

We are part of a ground-breaking collaboration of global, national and local partners working towards Ghana’s ambitious aim to make sure every home in the country is protected with life-saving mosquito nets by the end of 2012.

This partnership, led by the National Malaria Control Program (NMCP), has already distributed and hung over five million nets across five regions of Ghana, helping to protect up to 10 million people – that’s over 40% of the entire population.

Andrew Mitchell MP with campaingers from The Global Poverty Project to highlight their support for 0.7

The International Development Select Committee (IDSC) that oversees the work of DFID has decided to hold a one off evidence session on The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. The session will take place on Tuesday 17 April at 2pm and the Committee will question the Secretary of State for International Development the Rt Hon Andrew Mitchell MP, senior Global Fund officials, and interest groups. The Fund is the largest single source of funding for malaria and ensuring its future funding is critical to global efforts to tackle malaria.

By Annemarie Meyer, Programme and Policy Manager

I have spent last week with malaria experts from around the world discussing the significant progress that has been made as well as some of the challenges ahead in using mosquito nets for malaria prevention. The Alliance for Malaria Prevention meeting is a great forum to discuss and share learning and new research about how to get protective nets out to and used by everyone at risk from malaria.

Today The Lancet has published a study by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) in Seattle which uses a new model to estimate global malaria deaths.

The study estimates over 1.2 million lives were lost to malaria in 2010, almost twice the estimates used by the World Health Organisation (WHO) in its most recent malaria report. Whilst both approaches maintain that the majority of lives lost to malaria are in Africa – which bears 91% of all deaths – and amongst young children. The difference in the IHME’s data is the assumption that higher numbers of older children and adults in heavy-burden malaria areas are dying from the disease.

Presidents Sirleaf and Kikwete - ALMA 2012

Yesterday in Addis Ababa, there was a meeting of the African Leaders Malaria Alliance (ALMA) of 41 African heads of state and government working to end malaria-related deaths on the continent. Recent Nobel Prize laureate, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia assumed the chair of ALMA from President Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete of the United Republic of Tanzania. President Armando Guebuza of Mozambique was elected Deputy Chair of ALMA.

“The malaria campaign is emerging as a standout success in the effort to improve the health and welfare of mothers and children, but we cannot lose focus now,” said President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. “There is a moral and economic imperative to fill the malaria funding gap.”

Today is the meeting of the Africa Leaders Malaria Alliance (ALMA) at the African Union Summit in Addis Ababa. 41 African heads of state and government will take decisions on malaria financing challenges and solutions and agree new commitments to the malaria fight. President Sirleaf of Liberia is due to be elected to succeed President Kikwete of Tanzania as ALMA’s Chair. This afternoon, the two Presidents will speak at a press conference to share ALMA’s recommendations on addressing the malaria funding gap, now close to $3.3billion and threatening the momentum of historic progress on fighting malaria which has seen 33% decrease in malaria deaths in Africa over the last decade.