MALARIA: World Malaria Day Outlook 2010

Ahead of Sunday's World Malaria Day, news outlets examined global efforts to combat the disease and the mood among advocates.
"This is the most optimistic World Malaria Day to date," said U.N. special envoy Ray Chambers, the Financial Times reports, adding that his perspective is "shared by other top officials who have observed a recent resurgence in efforts to tackle the disease, which the latest estimates suggest infects 250m people and kills more than 850,000 a year." Improved medicines, fundraising campaigns and the involvement of high-profile personalities and community groups have helped fight the disease and raise awareness globally. "Perhaps most important, the creation last autumn of the African Leaders Malaria Alliance suggests the continent’s own politicians are beginning to take a necessary fresh look at their pivotal responsibility in improving their citizens’ health. Awa Coll-Seck, head of the Roll Back Malaria partnership of public, private and non-governmental groups, says: 'Things have moved really very quickly over the past three years, and you can see the results.'"
The FT notes that some countries, such as Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo, have not seen major improvements. "Still more countries have such poor-quality data that attempting to measure progress is difficult," the newspaper writes, adding that significant remaining challenges are "deepening, broadening and sustaining the response".
http://globalhealth.kff.org/Daily-Reports/2010/April/26/GH-042610-World-Malaria-Day.aspx