Belize celebrates World Malaria Day: Starts process to be officially certified malaria-free

Published by BBNTEAM at April 25, 2022

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Posted: Monday, April 25, 2022. 3:36 pm CST.

By Benjamin Flowers: Belize joins countries around the world today in celebrating World Malaria Day, which is celebrated to raise awareness on the global health agenda for the eradication of Malaria.

The Ministry of Health and Wellness issued a statement today noting that the local theme for World Malaria Day 2022 is “Maintaining a Malaria-free Belize starts with me.”

“This year’s theme signifies the start of a campaign to empower communities to take ownership in preventing the reintroduction of malaria in Belize. The Ministry of Health & Wellness (MoHW) continues to keep malaria high on the health agenda, supporting the mobilization of resources, empowering communities at risk of malaria, and strengthening key health prevention measures and care,” the MOHW said.

The Ministry also noted that malaria is a preventable and treatable disease, and Belize has managed to lower the number of reported malaria cases from over ten thousand cases in the 1990s to maintaining zero local cases for a third consecutive year, which marks a key eligibility requirement for malaria-free certification by the World Health Organization (WHO).

The Ministry’s data shows that between 2010 and 2021, Belize achieved a 100 percent reduction in local malaria cases (150 cases to zero cases), with the country’s last case reported in December 2018.

In light of this progress, Belize has officially written to the Director-General of the (WHO) to initiate the process to certify that Belize is malaria-free.

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