African heads of state promise action against malaria

Heads of state of Africa signed a pledge to reduce the continent's malaria mortality by 50% by 2110 at an international summit of Malaria in Abuja, Nigeria. The primary focus of the malaria control program will be insecticide-treated bednets. The WHO wants a 30-fold increase in the availability of bednets in the next 5 years, as well as immediate access to cheap and effective antimalarial combination therapy for families at risk of malaria, including pregnant women. Malaria control requires annual donations of US$1 billion from industrialized countries. However, donations alone will be insufficient unless there is immediate debt cancellation, says Jeffrey Sachs, director of the Center for International Development at Harvard. The World Bank also raised criticisms concerning the US$150 million annual donation. In response, Ok Pannenborg of the World Bank stated that there are 100 World Bank operations all over Africa and its US$150 million annual donation for African malarial control projects is money they can use, but whether they use it is another matter.