16 countries ink Windhoek Declaration to end malaria in the region by 2030
Southern African Development Community (SADC) delegates signed the Windhoek Declaration on Eliminating Malaria in the SADC Region in mid August, in three original copies of English, French and Portuguese languages.
The delegates declared the following as priority action requiring urgent attention; developing a road-map that outlines priority measures and paves the way for successful elimination in the Region, intensifying cross- border collaborations between member states to address border areas where malaria transmission persists and demonstrating that with financial and political determination a malaria free future is possible and contributes to the fight against the spread of infectious diseases, amongst a few things.
The SADC countries are deeply concerned that the longer the region waits to eliminate malaria, the greater the risk of resistance to insecticides and other key prevention and treatment tools, making future malaria elimination more challenging without new tools.
Delegates at the agreement signing were also concerned that malaria continues to have a detrimental effect on education, labour and employment, economic growth and development in the SADC Region and that the region’s critical sectors will continue to be at a disadvantage as long as they are affected by malaria.
The delegates also reaffirmed that malaria elimination is a top priority on the SADC Agenda and that as DADC’s first health subsidiary and SADC’s platform for malaria elimination, the Elimination 8 Regional Initiative continues to successfully fill its mandate to increase cooperation among Member States on malaria elimination.
Meanwhile, all stakeholders including the civil society organisations and the private sector are being encouraged to facilitate the implementation of the Declaration under the guidance of the SADC Ministers responsible for health and to undertake to review and monitor progress on the implementation of this Declaration at the Heads of State or Government Summit meeting through the SADC Ministers responsible for health.
