UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stated that delivering funding to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria is a smart and worthwhile investment, despite the economic difficulties the world currently faces.

“Across Africa, AIDS threatens to reduce GDP (gross domestic product) by up to 2.6 percent” said the Secretary General.  Programs supported by the Global Fund have helped delay the onset of AIDS in 2 million HIV-positive people, detected and treated 4.6 million cases of TB, delivered 70 million insecticide-treated bed nets and administered 74 million malaria drug treatments.

Return on investment is one of the most compelling arguments for continued investment in malaria.  Malaria places an incredible burden on struggling families in Africa as they miss days of work by having to care for sick family members or fight the disease themselves.  All of this translates into lost productivity and a vicious cycle that mires families in poverty.  If we continue to support programs and interventions that fight malaria these dire circumstances can be reversed and lives can be saved.

The Malaria Policy Center is watching closely the potential Kerry-Lugar bill that could reinvigorate foreign assistance to fight the conditions that can create despair in countries across the globe.

Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry has outlined that new legislation that could come in days, while focusing on Pakistan, would increase funding for non-military aid.

These developments remain important to the malaria community as leaders look to get the best “return on investment” on funding. Malaria programs have proven themselves as a strategic return as development in nations is improved, healthcare costs reduce, and fewer children dies of the disease.

March 30^th, 2009 Miramichi, NB, Canada-

A few Students at James M. Hill Memorial High School are making a substantial difference in the fight against malaria.  Tyson Theriault’s world issues class raised $12,000 for the Spread the Net Campaign founded by Rick Mercer and former MP Belinda Stronach.  The Spread the Next Campaign works with UNICEF to provide mosquito nets to people in Liberia and Rwanda. 

Due to the class’s vigorous efforts, their school came in fourth among high schools across the country and sixth overall, including universities and colleges.  Commitment, such as this, will make a monumental difference in the lives of children in Africa.  Collective action such as this can be extraordinarily effective.  However, individuals can make a difference as well, as little as $10 dollars can provide a bednet to children in Africa and save lives.

California Congressman and Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Howard Berman has voiced his strong support for the President’s plan to increase efforts in diplomacy and development.

Following intense discussions on the Hill about the 2010 budget, the Chairman’s words are a welcome addition to the conversation on how to best attack the conditions that create despair around the world, including the fight against malaria.

In response to a new report on malaria endemic areas in Africa through 2007, Tanzania government officials have outlined an effort end malaria deaths by 2015.

According to IPPMedia, Tanzanian Health and Social Welfare deputy minister Aisha Kigoda said on Tuesday that the release of the map would enhance that country’s fight against malaria ”with more knowledge about the disease and its prevalence across the country so that we can kick it out by 2015”.

Leaders are seeing the map as a good thing for the country and the donor community, elaborating: ”All these could use it to know exactly where the problem lies so that appropriate support or assistance can be directed to the most disadvantaged areas.”

Malaria is the ninth most significant cause of death and disability globally and is among the leading killers of under-fives and expectant mothers in Tanzania.

It is important that tools like this are updated and utilized so that those working to fight malaria have the more strategic and targeted efforts to end the scourge.

In an increasingly difficult economic environment it becomes more important than ever to ensure that the U.S. is fighting the conditions that create despair around the world. On such conditions is malaria.

An article in the Christian Science Monitor highlights the difficult decisions President Obama’s Administration is faced with and the global health community remains hopeful that existing commitments with be funded to fight the scourge of malaria.

Members of the malaria community have requested appropriations for bilateral malaria programs, as well as funding in support of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria. Combined, these resources are necessary to put the U.S. on the path to fulfilling President Obama’s commitment to ending malaria deaths by 2015.

At the Malaria Policy Center we will be keeping a close eye on malaria funding as the budget cycle progresses.

Scientists announced the development of a laser gun designed to eliminate mosquitoes.  The device stems from Cold War technology originally designed for the ‘Star Wars’ missile defense system.  The laser works by detecting the audio frequency created by the beating of mosquito wings. A computer triggers the laser beam, the mosquito’s wings are burnt off and its smoking carcass falls to the ground.  Bill Gates has backed the research.

This project, at first glance, sounds almost too fantastic to be believed, but beneath the fascinating science lies a larger issue for the malaria community.  There has been some debate about whether resources are better spent on treatment versus prevention versus controlling mosquitoes. It is a growing concern that the malaria virus will adapt to current treatments and this drug resistance could affect the ability of these treatments to heal the sick.  Furthermore, mosquitoes have also shown the ability to adapt to pesticides making the continue effectiveness of indoor spraying a concern. 

The bottom line is that we need as many tools to fight this virus as possible.  The tools we have now are working extremely well, but we must not lose sight of future needs and that is why funding for malaria research is crucial to fighting malaria and ending deaths among children under five.

One year after the appoint of Ray Chambers as Special Envoy for Malaria a new United Nations report shows progress toward the goal of providing all malaria affected countries in Africa with intervention tools and resources.

As reported in Ghana News Agency, according to the U.N. 40 percent of the population in sub-Saharan Africa now had access to long-lasting insecticide-treated mosquito nets (LLINs), compared to less than 10 per cent in 2005.

The report also cited the distribution of more than 140 million mosquito nets to date, offering protection to nearly 300 million people across Africa.

Along with the good news comes the reminder that progress must continue and nation’s from across the globe can work to end malaria deaths by funding the Global Fund and other initiatives.

Read the story.

This last week the city of New York named a small stretch of road after the global superstars U2 and while the designation of the temporary street is a fun way to for the city to welcome the band it can be used to highlight how they live.

During the press conference announcing “U2 Way” Bono, leader singer of the band, praised New York mayor Michael Bloomberg for his personal contributions to malaria research at Johns Hopkins University.

“The Anopheles mosquito kills about 3,000 children every day, of malaria, and his work in Johns Hopkins down there is really important work in ridding the world of the Anopheles mosquito,” Bono said.

Read the story

If Bono can mix malaria work with street naming, how can we make the fight against malaria top of mind for us?

The Malaria Policy Center will be spending the coming months asking and working to answer that question. Along side our global health community partners, we can truly make Malaria No More.