Malaria
A major killer Although it is a preventable and treatable disease, malaria is the major cause of death among children in the country, particularly in rural areas. The Ministry of Health has assigned high priority to malaria control and progress has been made in terms of treatment, control, prevention and social mobilization. In countries such as Mozambique where malaria is endemic, it is crucial that any fever in a child be treated as if it were malaria and the child be given a full course of anti-malarial tablets within 24 hours of the start of symptoms. Although fever in children is very common, only 15 per cent are treated for malaria and eight per cent are given drugs within 24 hours. For those children that are not given anti-malaria drugs, the risk of death is increased dramatically. For pregnant women, malaria is also a serious danger. Malaria infection during pregnancy can have adverse effects on both mother and foetus, including maternal anaemia, foetal loss, premature delivery, and delivery of low birth-weight babies. Malaria contributes to maternal mortality when it combines with other diseases and conditions such as tuberculosis, HIV infection, malnutrition and iron deficiency.
To improve treatment, Artemisinin Combination Therapy (ACT) has recently been introduced as first line treatment and it is expected that it will be gradually expanded throughout the country. For the control and prevention of malaria, the National Malaria Control Programme is rapidly scaling up the use of Indoor Residual house Spraying (IRS) and Insecticide Treated Nets (ITN) or the more recent Long Lasting Insecticidal Net (LLIN) programme. Action and impact The Ministry of Health, with support from UNICEF and other partners, works to prevent and control the incidence of malaria and provide treatment for vulnerable people. All children under five and pregnant women living in provinces that are remote and have high levels of poverty and HIV prevalence are reached by several programmes. UNICEF leverages funds for the procurement of ITNs and LLINs and anti-malaria drugs and helps promote the use of nets through social mobilisation campaigns. Nets are distributed free of charge to pregnant women through antenatal services and to children under the age of five through mobile teams, where the intervention is combined with others, such as de-worming, polio immunisation, vitamin A supplementation and treatment of common diseases.
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