The use of mosquito nets is one of the strategies implemented in the fight against malaria. Low household net use exposes the population to a high risk of malaria, and consequently to a public health problem, since it is associated with increased transmission of the virus, and therefore high morbidity and mortality in the long term.
The high morbidity of malaria among pregnant women - around 203 cases per 1,000 inhabitants in Cameroon - is a public health problem in that it is associated with risk factors for both maternal and newborn mortality. Nearly a quarter of pregnant women have been affected by malaria in the last three years. Both programmatic and surveillance data show that 50% of pregnant women receive three doses of Intermittent Preventive Treatment (IPTg), one of the two key strategies for preventing malaria in pregnancy.
The high prevalence of malaria among children aged 6-59 months is a major concern for the Cameroon government, as malaria is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality among this vulnerable group. Preventing this disease would considerably reduce the persistent trend in malaria-related morbidity observed among children under 5 in Cameroon, and in the Centre (excluding Yaoundé), East and South regions, which have prevalence rates of 49.1%, 41.4% and 45.6% respectively.
The Ministry of Public Health through the National Drugs Control Committee (NDCC) and the technical supervision of the Department of the Health Promotion (DPS) with the support of the Technical Secretariat of the Health Sector Strategy (TS/HSS) has developed this 2024-2030 National Strategic Plan for the Fight against Drugs (2024-2030 NSPFD).
