- Wallace and Gromit return with comic warning about AI dystopia
- Philippine military says will acquire US Typhon missile system
- Afghan bread, the humble centrepiece of every meal
- Honda and Nissan expected to begin merger talks
- 'Draconian' Vietnam internet law heightens free speech fears
- Israeli women mobilise against ultra-Orthodox military exemptions
- Asian markets track Wall St rally as US inflation eases rate worries
- Tens of thousands protest in Serbian capital over fatal train station accident
- Trump vows to 'stop transgender lunacy' as a top priority
- Daniels throws five TDs as Commanders down Eagles, Lions and Vikings win
- 'Who's next?': Misinformation and online threats after US CEO slaying
- Only 12 trucks delivered food, water in North Gaza Governorate since October: Oxfam
- Melrose Group Publicly Files Complaint to the Ontario Securities Commission
- Langers edge Tiger and son Charlie in PNC Championship playoff
- Explosive batsman Jacobs gets New Zealand call-up for Sri Lanka series
- Holders PSG edge through on penalties in French Cup
- Slovak PM Fico on surprise visit to Kremlin to talk gas deliveries
- Daniels throw five TDs as Commanders down Eagles
- Atalanta fight back to take top spot in Serie A, Roma hit five
- Mancini admits regrets over leaving Italy for Saudi Arabia
- Run machine Ayub shines as Pakistan sweep South Africa
- Slovak PM Fico on surprise visit to Kremlin
- Gaza rescuers say Israeli strikes kill 35
- 'Incredible' Liverpool must stay focused: Slot
- Maresca 'absolutely happy' as title-chasing Chelsea drop points in Everton draw
- Salah happy wherever career ends after inspiring Liverpool rout
- Three and easy as Dortmund move into Bundesliga top six
- Liverpool hit Spurs for six, Man Utd embarrassed by Bournemouth
- Netanyahu vows to act with 'force, determination' against Yemen's Huthis
- Mbappe back from 'bottom' as Real Madrid down Sevilla
- Ali hat-trick helps champions Ahly crush Belouizdad
- France kept on tenterhooks over new government
- Salah stars as rampant Liverpool hit Spurs for six
- Syria's new leader says all weapons to come under 'state control'
- 'Sonic 3' zips to top of N.America box office
- Rome's Trevi Fountain reopens to limited crowds
- Mbappe strikes as Real Madrid down Sevilla
- 'Nervous' Man Utd humiliated by Bournemouth
- Pope again condemns 'cruelty' of Israeli strikes on Gaza
- Lonely this Christmas: Vendee skippers in low-key celebrations on high seas
- Troubled Man Utd humiliated by Bournemouth
- 2 US pilots shot down over Red Sea in 'friendly fire' incident: military
- Man Utd embarrassed by Bournemouth, Chelsea held at Everton
- France awaits fourth government of the year
- Germany pledges security inquest into Christmas market attack
- Death toll in Brazil bus crash rises to 41
- Joshua bout only fight left for beaten Fury says promoter Hearn
- Odermatt stays hot to break Swiss World Cup wins record
- Neville says Rashford's career at Man Utd nearing 'inevitable ending'
- Syria's new leader vows not to negatively interfere in Lebanon
Malaria: Killer of African children set for vaccine zap
Hundreds of thousands of people, mostly children living in Africa, succumb every year to malaria, an age-old mosquito-borne scourge that worsened during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 627,000 people died of malaria in 2020, the latest year for which figures are available -- an increase of 12 per cent over 2019.
Ahead of World Malaria Day on Monday, AFP takes a look at this notorious disease and the excitement surrounding new vaccines.
- Half the world at risk -
Malaria is a threat to half the world's population.
Sub-Saharan Africa, Southeast Asia, the eastern Mediterranean, the Americas and areas in the Pacific such as Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands are all considered at risk.
- Rolling back disease -
Before 2020, the world had made steady progress on the transmission and treatment of malaria, chiefly through the use of insecticide-treated mosquito nets, testing and effective drugs.
Annual cases had fallen by 27 percent by 2017 compared with the start of the century and deaths had plunged by over 50 percent.
In June 2021, China was certified as malaria-free by the WHO, ending a long battle that began in the 1940s when the country reported 30 million cases annually.
China has gone four consecutive years without a single locally-sourced case.
- Setback -
Some 241 million cases of malaria disease were recorded worldwide in 2020, 14 million more than a year earlier, according to the WHO.
Approximately two-thirds of the additional deaths in 2020 were linked to disruption in providing malaria prevention, testing and treatment during the coronavirus pandemic.
Many patients avoided hospitals for fearing of contracting the novel virus.
- Big killer in Africa -
Sub-Saharan Africa is where 95 percent of all malaria cases and 96 percent of all deaths occur.
Half the world's cases in 2020 were reported from four African countries: Nigeria (31.9 percent of known cases), DR Congo (13.2 percent), Tanzania (4.1 percent) and Mozambique (3.8 percent).
- Very young victims -
Children under five are the most vulnerable to malaria.
In 2020, some 80 percent of the total malaria deaths on the African continent were in this age category.
- Five parasite species -
Records of the disease date back to antiquity, with symptoms including fever, headaches and muscle pain, followed by cycles of chills, fever and sweating.
Five parasite species cause malaria in humans, and all are spread through the bites of infected female mosquitoes.
The Plasmodium falciparum parasite is responsible for the most deaths.
- Treatments -
Several preventative treatments are available that help reduce the intensity of the disease and avoid deaths as well as reduce transmission.
The WHO says the best, particularly for P. falciparum malaria, is artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT).
Preventative treatments are also strongly recommended for pregnant women and infants living in at-risk areas and travellers going to these zones. Insecticide-treated bed nets are also a cheap and effective shield.
- Vaccine buzz -
In October 2021, the WHO recommended "broad use" of the world's first malaria vaccine for children in sub-Saharan Africa after reviewing a pilot programme run in Ghana, Kenya and Malawi.
The RTS,S vaccine, which is made by the British pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline, was found to considerably reduce child mortality from the P. falciparum parasite, which is most common in Africa.
Other vaccines are on the horizon, including one developed by Britain's Oxford University, whose Matrix-M vaccine candidate became the first to surpass a WHO threshold of 75-percent efficacy.
Ch.Kahalev--AMWN