Ministry of Health in Mozambique and the Malaria Consortium have teamed up to carry out a study on malaria in the country.

Development Diaries understands that the study aims to assess the feasibility, acceptability, and protective effect of SMC in Nampula province, in the north of Mozambique.

Malaria Consortium intends to establish if seasonal malaria chemoprevention (SMC) – a highly effective intervention to prevent malaria in children under five, which is currently being delivered in the Sahel region of Africa – can have similar results in countries like Mozambique.

Mozambique has the third-highest number of malaria cases anywhere in the world, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Malaria transmission levels vary across the country, with a significantly higher prevalence in central and northern regions, where malaria transmission peaks during the rainy season.

Malaria Consortium says it anticipates reaching an estimated 72,000 children aged three to 59 months with SMC, which will be implemented between November 2020 and February 2021 to coincide with the region’s rainy season.

In the Sahel, it is understood that SMC has been proven as a safe, cost-effective, and feasible intervention that can prevent up to 75 percent of malaria cases.

SMC has not previously been tested in the country because a reported higher resistance to SP in the region may impact the intervention’s effectiveness.

‘We are excited to be working on this project – it’s the first time SMC will be piloted outside of the Sahel region’, Country Director at Malaria Consortium, Mozambique, Maria Rodrigues, said.

‘This could provide the foundation for successful SMC campaigns rolled out in countries beyond West and Central Africa.

‘We are grateful for the support of the Ministry of Health and other partners, it is an exciting time for everyone’.

Source: Malaria Consortium

Photo source: GSK