April 23, Nairobi -- USAID Kenya Director of the Office for Population and Health, Barbara Hughes joined officials from the Ministry of Health to brief the media on Kenya’s malaria program. 

The media breakfast is one of the Government of Kenya’s activities to mark World Malaria Day on April 25. World Malaria Day will also be celebrated at Obambo Primary School in Kisumu County.

Malaria is a leading cause of illness and death among children under 5. With support from the President’s Malaria Initiative, USAID is working with the Government of Kenya to strengthen prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. Mortality rates among children under the age of five, from any cause, have declined by 36% from 2003 to 2009. 

“The President’s Malaria Initiative works with Kenya’s national malaria control program targeting pregnant women and children under five years of age, the two most vulnerable groups hardest hit by malaria, and we focus on delivering equitable care by targeting rural areas where the greatest burden of the disease usually falls on families who have lower incomes and whose access to health care is most limited,” Hughes said.    

Cabinet Secretary for the Ministry of Health, James Macharia urged the public to utilize the information and resources the government and its partners have worked to put in place. 

“I urge the media and other communication channels to use all possible mechanisms to inform the public about the use and importance of each malaria control intervention,” he said.

Since 2008, the President’s Malaria Initiative has invested over $173 million or KsH 14.7 billion in a massive scale-up of malaria prevention and treatment measures across Kenya.