After nearly 100 years of hard work, Egypt is now malaria-free
The World Health Organization (WHO) has announced that Egypt has been certified as a malaria-free country. Egypt has been working to eradicate malaria since the 1920s.
Egypt is certified malaria-free by WHO
Malaria is a disease that is mainly transmitted through mosquito bites, and is caused by a protozoan called the malaria parasite that parasitizes red blood cells. As red blood cells are destroyed, it causes fever, anemia, and fatigue, and in severe cases, it can cause complications such as encephalopathy and nephropathy, which can be life-threatening.
In Egypt, a country that celebrates the Nile River, people have been known to have suffered from malaria since around 4000 BC, and traces of malaria have been found in excavated mummies. In Egypt, where the majority of the population lives along the Nile River, the malaria incidence rate reached 40% in the 1920s, so the Egyptian government banned the cultivation of crops near residential areas. Furthermore, in 1930, malaria was designated a notifiable disease, and the first malaria-specific clinic was opened, focusing on diagnosis, treatment, and monitoring.
In the 1940s, malaria cases in Egypt soared to more than 3 million as a result of population displacement during World War II, disruptions to medical supplies and services, and the introduction of the vector mosquito Anopheles arabiensis . The Egyptian government fought back by hiring more than 4,000 medical workers and establishing 16 clinics.
In 1970, the Aswan High Dam was completed in the Aswan region at the southern tip of Egypt. The Aswan High Dam was a once-in-a-lifetime construction project for Egypt, which aimed to modernize agriculture and industry, but the accumulated water became a breeding ground for mosquitoes, bringing a new risk of malaria to Egypt. Therefore, Egypt, in cooperation with Sudan, launched a public health surveillance project to quickly detect and respond to malaria outbreaks.
By Mig Gilbert
According to the WHO, early case identification, prompt treatment, and thorough vector control had brought malaria under control in Egypt by 2001. Malaria diagnosis and treatment are provided free of charge to all residents of Egypt.
To be certified as a malaria-free country, it must be proven that the domestic chain of malaria transmission by mosquitoes has been broken nationwide for at least the past three years, and the country must also demonstrate that it has the ability to prevent the resurgence of infection. To date, the United Arab Emirates and Morocco have been certified as malaria-free in the Eastern Mediterranean Region by the WHO, with Egypt third. A total of 44 countries and one region in the world have been certified as malaria-free.
'Malaria is as old as Egyptian civilization, but this disease that plagued the pharaohs is now part of human history, not Egypt's future,' said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. 'Egypt's malaria-free status is truly historic and a testament to the determination of the Egyptian people and government to eradicate this ancient scourge.'
'Receiving the malaria elimination certificate today is not the end of the journey, but the beginning of a new phase. We must work tirelessly to sustain our gains by upholding the highest standards of surveillance, diagnosis, treatment and integrated vector management, and by maintaining an effective and responsive response. Sustained multi-sectoral efforts are essential if Egypt is to remain malaria-free,' said Egypt's Deputy Prime Minister Khalid Abdel Ghaffar.
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