Algeria, Argentina now free of malaria

Algeria and Argentina have become the latest countries to be certified by the World Health Organisation as being free of the deadly malaria parasite.

WHO only declares a country free of malaria when it proves it has interrupted indigenous transmission of the disease for at least 3 consecutive years.

Contracted through the bite of an infected mosquito, malaria remains one of the world’s leading killers, with an estimated 219 million cases and over 400,000 malaria-related deaths in 2017.

Approximately 60% of fatalities are among children aged under 5 years.

Algeria is the second country in the WHO African Region to be officially recognized as malaria-free after Mauritius which was certified in 1973. Argentina is the second country in the WHO Region of the Americas to be certified in 45 years after Paraguay in June 2018.

They reported their last cases of indigenous malaria in 2013 (Algeria) and 2010 (Argentina).

For both countries, malaria has a history that spans hundreds of years, and the battle against it has been hard-fought.

Over the last decade, improved surveillance allowed for every last case of malaria to be rapidly identified and treated. Importantly, both countries provided free diagnosis and treatment within their borders, ensuring no one was left behind in getting the services they needed to prevent, detect and cure it.

“Algeria and Argentina have eliminated malaria thanks to the unwavering commitment and perseverance of the people and leaders of both countries,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. “Their success serves as a model for other countries working to end this disease once and for all.”

French physician Dr Charles Louis Alphonse Laveran discovered the malaria parasite in Algeria in 1880. By the 60s, malaria had become the country’s primary health challenge, with an estimated 80,000 cases reported each year.

Its subsequent success in beating the disease can be attributed primarily to a well-trained health workforce, the provision of malaria diagnosis and treatment through universal health care, and a rapid response to disease outbreaks.

Together, these factors enabled the country to reach – and maintain – zero malaria cases.

“Algeria is where the malaria parasite was first discovered in humans almost a century and a half ago, and that was a significant milestone in responding to the disease,” said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa. “Now Algeria has shown the rest of Africa that malaria can be beaten through country leadership, bold action, sound investment and science. The rest of the continent can learn from this experience.”

In the 70s, Argentina set out to eliminate malaria.

Key elements of its approach included training health workers to spray homes with insecticides, diagnosing the disease through microscopy, and effectively responding to cases in the community.

Cross-border collaboration was also critical.

Between 2000 and 2011, it worked closely with Bolivia to spray more than 22,000 homes in border areas and conduct widespread malaria testing.

“Argentina reported the last indigenous case in 2010 and has demonstrated the commitment, the capacity within its health, laboratory and surveillance systems, and the necessary financing to prevent the re-establishment of malaria within it,” said Dr Carissa F. Etienne, Director of the Pan American Health Organization, WHO Regional Office for the Americas. “I’m sure that Argentina will serve as an inspiration and as an example for other countries of the Americas to achieve the elimination of malaria in the coming years.”

The certificates were presented by Ghebreyesus to Algeria and Argentina representatives on the sidelines of the 72nd session of the World Health Assembly.