Malaria continues to be nagging problem in Africa: WHO

The World Health Organisation has said that Malaria continues be a nagging problem in Africa and the efforts to curb the killer disease are not on track.

New Delhi: The World Health Organisation has said that Malaria continues be a nagging problem in Africa and the efforts to curb the killer disease are not on track.

Despite the billions of dollars spent on malaria programmes, the UN health agency said too many people are missing out on available resources like medicines and bed nets that protect against mosquitoes that spread the disease.

WHO had set a goal of cutting malaria cases to "near zero" by the end of last year. It fell far short, and now is aiming to reduce malaria cases and deaths by at least 90 per cent by 2030.

"We're far from having completed the job," said Dr. Pedro Alonso, director of WHO's malaria department. "The hardest is yet to come."