Sarangani now malaria-free, says prov’l health office

DAVAO CITY—A private sector-backed effort has made Sarangani province malaria-free for the first time, said Sarangani provincial health officer Dr. Arvin Alejandro.

No malaria case was reported this year, a feat achieved by “inclusive initiatives” against the mosquito-borne disease, he said.

The massive antimalaria effort, backed by a P25-million fund from Pilipinas Shell Foundation Inc. through the Global Fund, started in 2007 and steadily drove down the incidence of malaria in the seven-town province with about half a million people, said Alejandro.

“Cases gradually went down from 1,700 in 2006, 37 in 2010, 28 in 2011, four in 2012 and until a zero case in this year’s record,” he said.

Alejandro said the success of the province-wide antimalaria effort could be credited to the active participation of villagers.

“The provincial health office strengthened local systems … We always connected that with dengue so what we did was comprehensive. We did not do it for malaria alone but we also did it for mosquito-borne diseases,” he said. Allan Nawal, Inquirer Mindanao