By Staff Reporter
Malaria season kicks off this month across much of Africa. This disease remains the deadliest on the continent, particularly affecting children.
The decision by the Trump administration to cut 90% of USAID’s foreign aid contracts has raised alarms among health officials in Uganda, who warn of impending disaster in some of the poorest areas of the world.
Dr. Jimmy Opigo, who oversees Uganda’s malaria control program, informed The Associated Press that the stop-work orders from USAID issued in late January have forced him and his team to concentrate on disaster preparedness.
The U.S. is the leading bilateral supporter of anti-malaria initiatives in Africa.
Opigo emphasized the importance of anti-malarial medications and insecticide-treated bed nets, stating they are as essential as groceries.
“There needs to be a continuous supply,” he remarked from Kampala. With the reduction in resources due to the terminated contracts, he anticipates a surge in severe malaria cases later this year, which can lead to complications such as organ failure.
While there is no definitive cure, vaccines being distributed in parts of Africa are not perfect but are expected to continue with backing from a global vaccine alliance.
According to Malaria No More, a Washington-based organization, new projections indicate that just one year of disruption in the malaria-control supply chain could result in nearly 15 million additional cases and 107,000 more deaths worldwide.
The organization has called on the Trump administration to reinstate these critical programs before outbreaks escalate.
In 2023, Africa’s 1.5 billion population accounted for 95% of an estimated 597,000 malaria fatalities globally, as reported by the World Health Organization.
Health workers in Nigeria, Congo, and Uganda, the three African nations most affected by malaria, have described a series of negative consequences stemming from the reduction of U.S. government support.
The U.S. has allocated hundreds of millions of dollars annually to three countries through the President’s Malaria Initiative, led by USAID.
This funding is often distributed via various non-governmental organizations, medical charities, and faith-based groups, facilitating easier and sometimes free access to malaria prevention and treatment, particularly in rural areas.
In 2023, Uganda reported 12.6 million malaria cases and nearly 16,000 fatalities, with a significant number being children under five and pregnant women, as per WHO data.
Opigo mentioned that the U.S. has been contributing between $30 million and $35 million each year for malaria control efforts.
While he did not specify which contracts were canceled, he indicated that field research has also been impacted.
Some USAID funds in Uganda were designated for mosquito-spraying initiatives in remote regions, which were scheduled to commence in February, just before the rainy season when stagnant water fosters the breeding of anopheles mosquitoes.
However, these operations have been put on hold.
“We need to spray the houses before the rains, when the mosquitoes come to multiply,” Opigo stated.
Each year, long queues of malaria patients are visible outside clinics in various regions.
Malaria constitutes 30% to 50% of outpatient visits to health facilities nationwide, according to the Uganda National Institute of Public Health.
Opigo suggested that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institutes of Health could provide assistance.
However, he cautioned, “We need to manage the relationship with the U.S. very carefully.”
