An Indoor Residual Spraying (IRS) programme has been launched at Nkrankwanta in the Bono Region to fight against malaria in two districts. Rolled out in the Dormaa West and Banda districts, the initiative is targeted at ensuring the health and well-being of the people in the areas. The districts were selected to benefit from the intervention because they fall within the high malaria burden classified districts. The IRS project intends to kill mosquitoes that carry the malaria parasite, to prevent its transmission or reduce mosquito populations in areas with high malaria burden.
The initiative, a proven vector control intervention, involves spraying the inner walls of houses where mosquito vectors are known to rest, with an effective residual insecticide. Funded by the government, the exercise will be conducted by Kill-pest Services, a private organisation. At the launch last Tuesday, the Director-General of the Ghana Health Service (GHS), Dr Patrick Kuma-Aboagye, said despite the GHS’s commitment to eliminate malaria, the disease continued to pose a significant threat to public health, particularly among vulnerable populations.
He called on stakeholders, particularly the private sector, to invest in proven interventions such as the IRS to protect the health and well-being of citizens. Dr Kuma-Aboagye said a malaria-free Ghana could be created by strengthening interventions, improving delivery and fostering community engagement. He said the IRS initiative marked a significant milestone in the country’s unwavering commitment to eliminate malaria.
He said the government was implementing the National Malaria Elimination Strategic Plan (2024-2028) launched in January by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, to accelerate efforts towards malaria elimination. Dr Kuma-Aboagye said the plan outlined a set of ambitious goals and strategies to ensure that 100 per cent of the population was protected by at least one malaria preventive intervention.
He explained that the plan focused on expanding the coverage of existing interventions, improving delivery and introducing new approaches. He mentioned scaling up insecticide-treated nets, strengthening and expanding IRS coverage, promoting preventive chemotherapy and strengthening surveillance and monitoring as some of the key priorities being taken to control malaria. He urged residents at the beneficiary districts to embrace the initiative and work closely with health officials to ensure its effective implementation.
Dr Kuma-Aboagye thanked the President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI), AngloGold Ashanti and the Innovative Vector Control Consortium (IVCC) for their contributions to the Kill-pest project. The Director of Public Health, Dr Franklin Asiedu-Bekoe, said deaths due to malaria had plummeted from 2,799 in 2012 to 146 in 2023. He explained that malaria prevalence had declined from 27.5 per cent in 2011 to 8.6 per cent in 2022, reflecting the effectiveness of the preventive measures.
