Malaria

Preventing and Treating Malaria: Canada's Contribution

Facts about malaria

Malaria is one of the main causes of death among children in developing countries. This disease is often confused with pneumonia, whose symptoms are similar. It is also common for children to suffer from both at the same time.

The largest proportion of deaths from malaria occurs in sub-Saharan Africa, where young children are hit the hardest, with about 700,000 dying of the disease each year. Malaria must be treated quickly and effectively, as it can lead to death in less than 48 hours.

Research has shown that, since this disease is contracted through insect bites, using insecticide-treated bed nets reduces child mortality by nearly 20 percent and malaria-related infections by 50 percent. Before the mass distribution of insecticide-treated bed nets funded by CIDA and other donors, less than 5 percent of African homes had one. In all likelihood, this percentage was even lower among the poorer segments of the population.

According to the World Health Organization's World Malaria Report 2011:

• In 2010, 145 million insecticide-treated bed nets were distributed in sub-Saharan African countries where malaria is endemic. Today, about 50 percent of homes in this region have at least one insecticide-treated bed net.
• In 2010, 181 million treatments were administered worldwide.
• Between 2000 and 2010, the number of malaria cases declined by more than 50 percent in 43 of the 99 countries where the disease was contracted. In eight other countries, there was a downward trend from 25 percent to 50 percent.
• In 2010, an estimated 216 million malaria episodes occurred in 106 endemic countries and territories worldwide. Of this number, 81 percent were reported in the World Health Organization's Africa region.
• Between 2005 and 2010, the public-sector malaria identification rate increased from 20 percent to 45 percent in the World Health Organization's Africa region.
• In 2010, the number of deaths from malaria was estimated at 655,000, of which 91 percent occurred in Africa.
• Worldwide, children under five accounted for 86 percent of deaths from malaria.

Canada's commitment

Community-based treatment initiatives

Canada has long been a world leader in funding insecticide-treated bed net distribution programs. Canada is now focusing its efforts on improving access to treatment for the poor, who sometimes have difficulty getting to a clinic or a hospital in time. To bring about a significant decrease in child mortality, treatment must be available in local communities.

CIDA and its partners favour a community-based approach to health care delivery. Modern anti-malaria treatment―artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT)―is provided to patients in their own community, where the need is most urgent.

As part of its global commitment to improve Maternal, Newborn and Child Health, CIDA is working to build the capacity of front-line community health workers to identify and treat the main causes of death among children under five: malaria, pneumonia, and diarrhea:

• Between 2007 and 2012, CIDA contributed $105 million to the Catalytic Initiative to Save a Million Lives, implemented by UNICEF.
• Since 2009, CIDA has contributed $35 million in funding to support UNICEF projects in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Indonesia, Sierra Leone, Uganda, and Zambia.
• Since 2008, CIDA has provided $74.4 million to international non-governmental organizations, including Population Services International, Malaria Consortium, Save the Children Canada, and the International Rescue Committee.

To find out more about these initiatives and other CIDA-related malaria control projects, consult Project Browser.

Continued support for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria

CIDA also supports the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, which allocates one quarter of its funding to the prevention and treatment of malaria.

In September 2010, Canada announced that it would disburse $540 million over three years to the Global Fund― 20 percent more than Canada's previous pledge. This brings Canada's total commitment to the Global Fund since 2002 to more than $1.5 billion. This is the highest amount that Canada has disbursed to a health-related international institution.

Thanks to programs supported by the Global Fund, an estimated 7.7 million lives have been saved since 2004.

Key results

CIDA is achieving encouraging results in preventing and treating malaria.

• Since 2002, CIDA funding for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and UNICEF has resulted in the distribution of more than 230 million insecticide-treated bed nets in Africa, has made it possible to administer 230 million anti-malaria treatments.
• Canada's support to the Catalytic Initiative to Save a Million Lives has resulted in the training of over 48,000 front-line health workers in Ethiopia, Ghana, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, and Niger. These health workers have distributed more than 4.6 million insecticide-treated bed nets and administered anti-malaria treatments to 636,243 children.
• Since 2008, more than 11,000 community health workers in 12 African countries have been trained through Population Services International, Malaria Consortium, Save the Children Canada, and the International Rescue Committee, and more than 840,000 treatments have been provided for malaria, pneumonia, and diarrhea.