KAMPALA, April 25 (Xinhua) -- The gathering dark clouds could not stop a mammoth crowd from marching through the Bugiri town in eastern Uganda on Tuesday, commemorating World Malaria Day, which annually falls on April 25.
Led by the country's popular band, people marched on, resolving to fight the deadly disease, which remains the leading cause of death in the country, especially among children.
The national commemorations are being held in Bugiri under the national theme "Getting back on Track through investing, innovating and implementation."
Minister of Health Ruth Aceng on Tuesday said the country is still experiencing a malaria epidemic. "It should be noted that malaria remains a major public health problem in Uganda."
"Today we yet again launch the fourth universal coverage campaign for the distribution of mosquito nets. The campaign dubbed 'Under the Net' will see the distribution of 28.5 million Long Lasting Insecticide Treated Nets throughout the country," said the minister, who advised the public to always sleep under mosquito nets even when there are no mosquitoes hovering around.
According to the ministry statistics, for every 10 sick people in Uganda, three have malaria; for every 10 children below five years old admitted to the hospital, six have malaria and may die; for every 100 pregnant women, 20 have malaria and risk losing their babies and even their own lives.
Uganda's previous efforts to combat the disease have paid off following a notable reduction in malaria cases over the last decade as the malaria parasite prevalence rate was reduced from 42 percent in 2009 to 9 percent in 2019, according to Aceng.
The mortality rate reduced from 20 per 100,000 in 2016 to nine per 100,000 in 2019, and the proportion of malaria deaths to total deaths in health facilities decreased from 18 percent in 2013 to 12 percent in 2019, the minister said.
"Next year, we shall introduce and scale up the malaria vaccine," Aceng said, adding that the government has in the past deployed indoor residual spraying, distributed mosquito nets, provided diagnostics and treatment services and larvacide management to combat the disease.
"Always seek medical assistance from qualified health personnel in case you notice signs of malaria. Clear bushes and stagnant water around your homes, as these are breeding sites for mosquitoes," she said.
The same call was earlier made by the Deputy Speaker of Parliament Thomas Tayebwa after participating in a walk to raise awareness to end malaria.
"We must mobilize our communities to join the war against malaria. Let's sensitize our people to stop using mosquito nets for fishing, harvesting coffee, making local drinks, or trapping grasshoppers and white ants," Tayebwa said.
