From Peter Eze, Abuja
THE World Health Organisation (WHO) has said about 3.2 billion people remain at risk of malaria attack globally.
This information was contained in a report entitled: “Eliminating Malaria”, released yesterday on World Malaria Day, observed on April 25 every year.
It stated that in 2015 alone, 214 million new cases of the disease were reported in 95 countries and no fewer than 400,000 people died of malaria.
The “Global Technical Strategy for Malaria 2016- 2030,” approved by the World Health Assembly in 2015, calls for the elimination of local transmission of malaria in, at least, 10 countries by 2020.
WHO also said mosquito resistance to insecticides used in nets and indoor residual spraying is growing.
It also warned of parasite resistance to a component of one of the most powerful antimalarial medicines.
It added that further progress against malaria would likely require new tools that do not exist today, and the further refining of new technologies.