London, England – The United Nations General Assembly, together with a collection of world leaders, international nonprofit organisations, celebrities and religious figures, are meeting in New York for the sustainable development summit this weekend. It is expected that UN member states will formalise the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – the successors to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) which come to an end this year – and discuss a range of critical issues such as poverty, health, gender equality and the environment.
“The SDGs will provide the framework for the next fifteen years of development efforts, as we work to eradicate poverty, avert climate change and ensure healthy lives for all,” said Charles Nelson, Malaria Consortium Chief Executive. “However, the SDGs will only be truly transformational if their ambitious targets are matched by strong financial and political commitments, from donor countries and developing countries alike.”
Millennium Development Goal 6, relating to health and malaria, was one of the great success stories of the last 15 years, with global deaths from malaria cut in half since 2000. “It is a huge achievement that the malaria mortality rate has fallen by 60 percent in 15 years,” said Mr Nelson. “Over six million lives have been saved, and now we have countries declaring that they are on the route to eliminating malaria. We are at a point now where we have to keep that going.”
Malaria will need to remain a priority during the SDG era in order to sustain the gains made so far, especially with the emergence of threats such as drug resistant malaria parasites in Southeast Asia. Malaria Consortium’s work in the region – screening migrant populations at border checkpoints, strengthening monitoring systems and communicating positive behaviour change – will feed directly into the achievement of SDG 3, which aims to end malaria and other communicable diseases by 2030.
Another area of concern under goal 3 is ending preventable child deaths over the next 15 years. Malaria Consortium is continuing to pioneer approaches for diagnosis and treatment of common childhood illnesses at community level in Africa that will play a part in meeting child health targets. New initiatives include training community health workers in South Sudan to assess and treat malnutrition in young children by providing food supplements.
Initiatives such as these must remain a priority for global health organisations and world leaders alike in order to ensure healthier populations and economies. “I personally believe many hundreds of thousands or millions will die from malaria as a consequence if we don’t keep going,” said Mr Nelson. “And we must, because we can beat malaria.”
Notes to editors:
About Malaria Consortium:
Malaria Consortium works with partners, including all levels of government, to improve the lives of all, especially the poorest and marginalised, in Africa and Asia. We target key health burdens, including malaria, pneumonia, dengue and neglected tropical diseases, along with other factors that impact child and maternal health.
For more information please contact: Michelle Davis, Senior Communications Manager, Malaria Consortium.
Email: media@malariaconsortium.org or call +44 (0)20 7549 0210; www.malariaconsortium.org