Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen.
We are truly humbled to receive this acknowledgement from the African Union, that we have contributed in some way towards arresting the spread of malaria in our country.
We would like to congratulate the other recipients in this category: Cape Verde, Namibia, Rwanda, São Tomé and Príncipe, South Africa, Swaziland, and Zambia. We have all qualified for this award because we have reduced mortality from malaria and have implemented either long lasting insecticide treated nets or indoor residual spraying.
South Africa and other Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries have initiated a process to eliminate malaria, in keeping with the call from the African Union in its 2007 malaria declaration. In South Africa, the goal is to eliminate local transmission of malaria by the year 2018.
Let me illustrate what would happen to our target of malaria elimination if we do not use DDT. In 1996 South Africa decided not to use DDT in its malaria Vector Control Programme in line with pressure from environmental groups for it not to be used in malaria control programmes.
This resulted in huge increases of malaria cases in the country: malaria increased from a baseline of approximately 10 000 cases in 1995 to 64 622 in the year 2000. The cause of this increase was mainly due to the particular species that transmitted malaria which was once eradicated with DDT, had reappeared and was resistant to other types of insecticides.
The Department of Health therefore decided to return to the use of DDT in 2000. Subsequently malaria cases decreased to 26 506 in 2001, with progressive decreases in subsequent years to 9 866 cases in 2011. DDT has therefore remained the insecticide of choice for use in the malaria Vector Control Programme in South Africa.
It is not a co-incidence that Swaziland is also an awardee in this category with South Africa and that Mozambique is an awardee in the Policy category. We have jointly implemented the malaria project of the Lubombo Spatial Development Initiative (LSDI), which is a cross border programme in which our three countries have participated.
Through this collaboration we have demonstrated massive reductions in each of our respective countries, again due mainly through the use of Indoor Residual Spraying.
It is important therefore to note that mosquitoes do not respect borders, hence we have to ensure that countries that share borders work closely together to ensure malaria eradication – one country working alone will not succeed.
I wish to therefore make a call for additional cross border initiatives such as the Lubombo Spatial Development Initiative and the continued, responsible use of DDT for indoor residual spraying.
We congratulate our colleagues and neighbours, and pledge to continue working with all to eliminate malaria.
I thank you.
