Govt extends by 5 years pact to eradicate malaria
- Bhubaneswar: The state health and family welfare department on Tuesday extended its partnership with Malaria No More (MNM), which works to eliminate the vector- borne disease from Odisha, by five years, officials said.
- A memorandum of understanding was signed between the government, the NGO and its partner organization, Priyantha. As per the new agreement, special focus will be given on fair reporting of the disease to ascertain its burden and take steps accordingly so that it can be eliminated by 2030.
- Priyantha, which is a grass-root level organization, will help in making sure that there is fair reporting of the disease, especially from the private healthcare facilities. Special focus will be given to Koraput and Malkangiri, two of the most malaria-endemic districts in the country.
- "The work done by Malaria Sathee and Malaria Doot in the remote areas of Koraput and Malkangiri in 2021-22 were highly commendable it was instrumental in saving lives. With the extended partnership with MNM, I hope our state will witness a new need-based strategy for eliminating the disease," special secretary of state health department, Ajit Mohanty, said.
- Officials said the partnership will also focus on integration of latest tools and innovative technology, including advanced data reporting al and management and analytical tools. The state, along of with MNM, will strengthen the inter-sectoral and in term departmental coordination for a concerted and collaborative effort for the elimination t of the vector borne disease S from the state.
- As per National Vector- Borne Disease Control Programma's data, the state had reported three malaria deaths in 2018, nine in 2019 and in 2020 and 13 in 2021. Till October 2022, the state reported four malaria deaths.
- "Odisha being one of the worst malaria-endemic states in the country, it is critical to achieve the government's goal eliminating the disease by 2030. The extension of our partnership with the government will be crucial and we have set higher goals this time," director global policy and advocacy at MNM, Anuradha Khanal, said.