Cape Verde yesterday completed three years with not a single case of local malaria transmission reported and now awaits certification as a malaria-free country by the World Health Organization (WHO), said the Government.
“Since 2018, we have not registered any indigenous cases of malaria at a national level; this is thanks to the excellent work carried out by all health workers”, stated in a note the Minister of Health, Arlindo do Rosário.
According to Arlindo do Rosário, Cape Verdean health authorities are working with WHO to certify Cabo Verde as a country free of indigenous malaria transmission.
Certification is awarded by WHO when a country proves that it has stopped local transmission of the disease for at least three consecutive years.
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In the case of Cape Verde, in the last three years, only about a dozen people infected with malaria have been identified, all from other countries, without any local transmission of the disease. This is especially important to Cabo Verde, a country that heavily relies on tourism, which could benefit greatly by the added security that such a certification may bring to prospecting tourists.
“It is in our hands and we can all continue this work together”, said Arlindo do Rosário, guaranteeing that “urgent interventions” will move forward to eliminate points of concern in the anti-vector fight, namely still water.
In addition, spraying campaigns are underway to reduce the concentration of mosquitoes, particularly in the capital city of Praia.
Malaria is transmitted between humans through infected mosquitoes, and remains a major health risk, especially in Africa and Asia, being one of the main causes of death globally. In 2018, according to WHO, the disease affected 228 million people and killed about 405,000, mainly in the sub-Saharan Africa region.
