From 30 Million cases to Zero: China Declared ‘Malaria Free’ by WHO
If you’re a regular reader of the news, you’re probably aware of the deadly disease known as malaria. Malaria is a parasitic infection that is spread through the bite of an infected mosquito. China was recently designated a ‘malaria-free nation’ by the World Health Organization, making it the world’s 40th malaria-free country.
A country may apply for WHO certification if it has no indigenous cases reported for three consecutive years. Additionally, the country must demonstrate its capacity to prevent future infection.
Prior to China, El Salvador was granted the status in 2021, Argentina in 2019, and Paraguay and Uzbekistan in 2018. Additionally, 61 countries had never reported a single instance of malaria in their history. In these countries, malaria parasites have never appeared or vanished for no apparent reason.
Although China is now malaria-free, malaria was a severe concern in the mid-20th century. To make sense of this, let’s have a look at the background.
BACKGROUND
Malaria is well documented in ancient Chinese medicinal writings; references to malaria can be found in Chinese history dating back 4000 years. Malaria used to spread rapidly, particularly in rural regions. In the 1940s, China reported approximately 30 million yearly malaria cases and 0.3 million annual deaths from the disease. 90% of the Chinese population was considered at risk of infection.
In 1955, China launched a ‘National Malaria Control Program’ in an attempt to restrict the disease, although it was initially unsuccessful. In the 1960s and 1970s, malaria was fairly prevalent. However, In 1990, only 1,17, 000 cases were reported, relatively a tiny number but indicative of the success of China’s anti-malaria programs.
The Chinese government had taken numerous healthcare initiatives and decisions throughout the preceding 70 years that aided in the country’s attainment of malaria-free status. China implemented an integrated policy to contain the illness, which encompassed diverse actions in the socio-economic and environmental sectors, altering the transmission pattern and resulting in a steady decline in indigenous malaria cases. As a result, epidemic areas shrunk.
In 2010, the Chinese national health and family planning commission adopted a ‘National Malaria Elimination Action’ for the period 2010–2020, in accordance with the United Nations Millennium Development Goals. China planned to prevent and eradicate malaria infection in the country by 2020 through this effort.
China has successfully executed these techniques on the ground, and no indigenous malaria cases have been reported in China since 2017.
China Winning Malaria Battle
China has used both aggressive and passive approaches throughout the last 70 years of the malaria battle. According to the WHO, in the 1950s, Beijing began identifying areas where malaria was increasing and combating it with anti-malarial medications. They also began reducing mosquito breeding sites and promoting household insecticide sprays.
In 1967, China concentrated its efforts on developing new anti-malarial remedies; these efforts resulted in the discovery of ‘Artemisinin,’ one of the most effective anti-malarial drugs. China also became the first country in the world to conduct tests on ‘insecticide-treated mosquito nets’ in the 1980s.
In the 1980s, China was one of the first countries in the world to do substantial research on the use of insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) for malaria prevention, and by 1988, the country had distributed more than 2.4 million nets.
The country provided free basic public health services, which included antimalarial treatment medications. Due to this package, Chinese citizens now have access to affordable diagnostic and treatment treatments for malaria, regardless of their legal or socioeconomic situation.
China used a more stringent “1–3–7 plan” in recent years, which enabled China to achieve complete victory over malaria.
Under the method, 1 denoted a one-day deadline for the completion of the diagnosis report, 3 denoted a three-day deadline for officials to confirm and take preventative measures against infection, and 7 denoted a seven-day window for officials to take additional steps.
Conclusion
China’s malaria policies have encountered numerous obstacles. The most significant obstacle was averting the threat of imported malaria cases. Yunan province in China was particularly vulnerable to imported cases of the disease from countries in Southeast Asia, as well as from Chinese nationals returning from malaria-endemic areas such as sub-Saharan Africa.
To address all of these concerns while simultaneously preventing the spread of disease, China prioritized surveillance and regional malaria initiatives.
Earlier many countries made it to the list of ‘Malaria-free nations’ but considering the size of China, this is a remarkable achievement. However, Malaria is still causing thousands of death worldwide primarily in sub-Saharan Africa and in south-Asia.
