Published: 17 August 2022

Support from PMI is critical in saving millions of lives and building a brighter future for Africa

The African Leaders Malaria Alliance joins the global malaria community in congratulating Dr. David Walton on his appointment as the new U.S. Global Malaria Coordinator. Dr. Walton was appointed by President Biden and brings over two decades of experience working in global health and development.  He has a strong track record and passion for building local partnerships to expand access to care and provide primary health services to the hardest to reach populations.

ALMA looks forward to continuing to work with PMI in its transformative role in the malaria fight, which over the last 16 years has enabled millions of families and children to grow up free from the impact of malaria, building a healthier and better future, contributing to stronger health systems, global health security and broader national development goals and ensuring that African countries are safer, productive and more prosperous.

Led by USAID and co-implemented with the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, PMI supports 27 partner country programmes in sub-Saharan Africa and the Greater Mekong subregion in Southeast Asia – accounting for over 80 percent of the world’s malaria burden. Together with global partners and national governments, PMI has helped save millions of lives and prevented billions of cases of malaria.

In 2020, 611,802 Africans died from this disease of which 80% were children under the age of 5. Furthermore, revised estimates by the WHO in the 2021 World Malaria Report indicate that the number of malaria deaths was previously underestimated, and the burden is worse than previously understood. The African Union did not achieve the goal of reducing malaria incidence and mortality by 40% by 2020, a key milestone to eliminating malaria in Africa by 2030. According to WHO estimates, 96% of global malaria cases and 98% of malaria deaths occur on this continent. Globally, an estimated 1.7 billion malaria cases and 10.6 million malaria deaths were averted in the period 2000–2020. Most of the cases (82%) and deaths (95%) averted were in the WHO African Region. This demonstrates global solidarity and shared responsibility and the urgent need to further strengthen collaboration with the international community and the importance of increasing domestic resource mobilisation.  25 countries in Africa are in the process of establishing multi-sectoral national End Malaria Councils and Funds to drive multisectoral support for the fight against malaria. EMCs have mobilised millions of United Stated Dollars in financial and in-kind support for the fight against malaria.

Together with its partners including the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria and National Governments, PMI has helped save more lives. In large part because of progress against malaria, a child has a better chance of survival now than any other point in history. PMI partner countries in sub-Saharan Africa have seen significant reductions in all-cause mortality rates in children under the age of 5. PMI continues to invest in new tools (data, research, new nets) and innovative approaches and partnerships to improve efficiency and further accelerate progress and impact. ALMA’s work to promote access to malaria services through resource mobilization, and accountability and action has been facilitated by our effective collaboration with PMI in malaria-endemic countries.

ALMA will continue to foster high level political engagement, promote evidence-based decision making, increasingly engage regional economic blocs and mobilise youth armies to harness Africa’s demographic dividend and defeat malaria.