WHO considers malaria a major health threat in Ethiopia – third update

The identified figures correspond to the period from January 1 to October 20, and, according to WHO, the disease continues to pose a serious threat to public health.

The text, published on October 31, clarifies that the disease poses a serious problem in the African country, where about 75 percent of the land surface is considered endemic and about 69 percent of the population living in these areas is at risk of infection.

Recurrent outbreaks are responsible for up to 20 percent of deaths in children under five years of age.

The UN agency has warned of ongoing difficulties in providing essential health services, including malaria treatment, at health centers due to access difficulties as they remain largely non-functional in conflict-affected areas.

The report rates the national malaria risk assessment in Ethiopia as high due to multiple factors, including the spread of the Anopheles Stephensi mosquito, drought and food insecurity, extreme weather events caused by climate change, and ongoing conflict.

However, at the regional level, the risk is moderate, given simultaneous outbreaks of malaria and other vector-borne diseases in six neighboring countries: Djibouti, Eritrea, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan and Sudan.