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Rumbidzayi Zinyuke-Senior Health Reporter
Manicaland has reported a marked decline in malaria with Government programmes on both sides of the border with Mozambique being coordinated to deal with the mosquitoes.
Manicaland is one of the provinces with the highest burden of malaria, contributing about 35 percent of the country’s total cases but slightly less in terms of mortality. Lying next to Mozambique, interaction between communities is high thereby increasing chances of the spread of malaria between the two countries. Five out of the seven districts in Manicaland share a border with Mozambique spanning over 700km.
Manicaland provincial medical director Dr Munyaradzi Mukuzunga recently said over the past two years, statistics have significantly shown a decline in the incidence of malaria as interventions begin to bear fruit.
“We have seen a decline in malaria cases. In 2021 up to the third quarter, we had recorded 38 315 cases but during the same period in 2022, we had recorded 28 858 cases, which is a significant decline. During the same period, we had recorded 36 deaths in 2021, but for the same period in 2022 we had recorded 15 deaths. For 2020 and 2021, across the board, we had slightly less than 50 percent decline in cases in some districts. We maintained this decline in 2022,” he said.
In the past, at least three districts in the province used to record incidence of malaria above 100 cases per 1 000 population. Last year, most districts, with the exception of Nyanga and Chimanimani, had reduced to below 100 by the third quarter.
Dr Mukuzunga said there had been efforts both at national and regional level to fight malaria.
Zimbabwe and Mozambique were both part of the Elimination Eight Initiative (E8), a coalition of eight countries working across national borders to eliminate malaria in southern Africa by 2030.
“This has created a platform whereby we have some interactions at national level. We have also had some meetings with Mozambique at provincial level trying to look at how to synergise and align responses. So if they are spraying (in the indoor residual spraying) we spray at the same time so that at the end of the day these interventions work together.
“After the meeting in Tete Province three years ago, the emphasis was at district level and they have been working in tandem with their counterparts across the border in areas of concern like sharing data; whether there is an outbreak, or there are issues in terms of surveillance or identifying the vector and knowing the terms of insecticide resistance for this vector. So these are the areas we have been collaborating with Mozambique,” he said.
In Zimbabwe malaria transmission increases from November through to May with a peak transmission from February to May. This coincides with the rain season which increases the mosquito breeding sites.
Zimbabwe uses World Health Organization certified malaria control and elimination strategies, including vector control such as indoor residual spraying, use of long-lasting insecticidal nets and to a limited extent larval source management.
Mosquito control remains one of the most important strategies for prevention, control and elimination of malaria.
“Currently we are embarking on indoor residual spraying which is an important vector control method for malaria and which has contributed to the decline in malaria among other factors. We are happy that through the various projects in terms of ensuring that community health workers diagnose and treat malaria, we have had training that has basically strengthened the case management and diagnosis of malaria and has increased access because these people live within communities so they get treatment early and don’t have complications.
“So if we avoid complications, we also avoid deaths. Our case fatality rate is 0,7 percent which is quite low so we hope to maintain that so that we can achieve the goal of having zero deaths from malaria,” he added.
Birchenough Bridge under Buhera district has also started to witness the results of the malaria interventions being implemented.
Birchenough Bridge hospital matron Mr Nicholas Sithole said the area was now in the pre-elimination stage.
“Previously we used to be a malaria zone but now we are in the pre-elimination zone. We have controlled malaria through indoor residual spraying, treatment of those who are infected, investigating where malaria was coming from and then implementing control measures. Now we are seeing isolated cases,” he said.
Overall, the country has made remarkable progress over the past two decades in the fight against malaria and recorded a 93 percent decline in the incidence of the disease.
The Ministry is currently implementing malaria elimination activities in 30 districts that have reached a malaria transmission incidence of 4 cases per 1000 population.
To ensure that the communities are protected against the disease, the Government is targeting to roll out indoor residual spraying in 25 districts to protect a population of 2,8 million.
Online Reporter