After five years of consolidation of the elimination, Morocco has been certified as malaria-free country by the WHO in 2010, the ministry said in a statement released Monday on the occasion of World Malaria Day, celebrated on April 25 each year and placed under the theme “Harnessing Innovation To Reduce The Malaria Disease Burden And Save Lives”.
However, although the elimination of indigenous malaria has been maintained for 17 years, a re-emergence is still possible due to the persistence of the vectors of this disease and the registration of more and more cases of imported malaria, with an average of 500 cases per year, the statement said.
To this end, the Ministry of Health and Social Protection advocates a strategy that revolves around interventions of screening and early and free care of all imported cases, maintaining surveillance and control of the malaria vector as part of the Integrated Management of Anti-Vector Control (GILAV), in addition to advice to travelers, said the same source.
In this context, the ministerial department recommends that all travelers to a malaria endemic country observe some preventive measures, namely to take chemoprophylaxis of malaria, prescribed by a doctor, before departure, during the stay and after the return of the trip, sleep under a mosquito net impregnated with insecticide and wear light-colored clothing covering the maximum skin surface.
The ministry also recommends applying repellent to all exposed parts of the body and clothing in areas with a high density of mosquitoes and finally, upon return from the trip, continue to take the chemoprophylactic drug for malaria and consult a doctor in case of fever, gastrointestinal disorders or other warning signs.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the number of new cases of malaria, which is the most common vector-borne infectious disease in the world, has been estimated at 241 million cases, including 627,000 deaths. The WHO African Region alone accounts for 95% of malaria cases, the statement concluded.
Source: Agency Morocaine De Presse