Africa-Press – Botswana. President Advocate Duma Boko has called for an urgent action to mobilise domestic resources in the fight against Malaria.
President Boko was speaking at a side event to bestow him the Chairpersonship of the African Leaders Malaria Alliance (ALMA) at the African Union summit on Sunday.
He said that despite the many challenges faced by the continent, it was imperative for African member states to draw from emergency funds and increase budget allocation towards the health sector.
“I accept the role of the ALMA chair and pledge to build upon the remarkable legacies my
predecessors have established. As I step into this role, I am acutely aware of the immense responsibility ahead. The task before us is both challenging and urgent,’’ he said.
Numerous challenges including lack of funds and climate change, he relayed, worsened the already shoestring budget of the African Union member states.
Moreover, President Boko said the suspension of foreign aid by the United States of America to Africa compounded the already dire situation.
The onus, he said, was upon African Union member states to devise innovations that could help oust Malaria from the continent and leverage platforms such as the Green Climate Fund to ensure national programmes were up to the challenge.
For her part, AU Ambassador Minata Samate Cessouma made a clarion call to all to join hands to kick Malaria out of Africa once and for all.
Ambassador Samate Cessouma, who is the outgoing African Union Commissioner for Health, Humanitarian and Social Development shared President Boko’s sentiments that challenges such as human crises, financial shortfalls and the impact of climate change have toughed the war against Malaria.
“If left unaddressed these factors could threaten decades of hard work gained,’’ she said,
adding that the time to act was now.
She thanked in particular the government of Botswana for doing a sterling job in the fight against Malaria and was hopeful that President Boko would work even harder to end
Malaria in Africa. ALMA executive secretary, Ms Joy Phumaphi expressed confidence that President Boko would steer ALMA to victory against Malaria.
She said member states successes against Malaria were partly due to synergies with other global partners.
Former ALMA chairperson and president of Liberia, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf commended all
those who had put up a gallant fight against Malaria in the past amid challenges.
“The Africa Malaria progress report for 2024 shows us that Malaria remains an unsustainable burden on our health, our economies and social development,” she said.
It is to this end, that she called on the African continent to act urgently to circumvent the
adverse effects of the ongoing financial crisis, climate change, and humanitarian crisis, which she said represented the most serious emergency facing Malaria in 20 years and would lead to Malaria upsurges and epidemics if not addressed.
According to Johnson Sirleaf, African Union member states faced financing gaps to sustain existing levels of malaria-related services between now and 2026.
To get back on track and to win the fight against Malaria, an additional US$5.2 billion would have to be mobilised by member states annually to fully finance Malaria plans.
Meanwhile, President Boko had the privilege as the chairperson of ALMA to present the Malaria Elimination Award to Egypt in recognition of its unwavering efforts to combat Malaria.
ALMA is an African Union initiative aimed at ousting Malaria from the continent of Africa by 2030.
President Boko assumed the chairpersonship of the alliance from the president of Guinea Bissau, Umaro Sissoco Embalo.
The session was held under the theme: Changing the Story on Malaria; A Big Push to Deliver a Malaria-Free Africa.
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