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UN urges world to help Africa fight malaria

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon launched a new campaign on World Malaria Day on Friday.

  • Agencies
  • Published: 08:12 April 25, 2008
  • Gulf News

United Nations: UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon launched a new campaign on World Malaria Day on Friday.

Ban said in a statement the African countries hardest hit by malaria have fallen behind in the fight against the disease, which kills at least 1.3 million people each year.

"We need desperately to step up our efforts to roll back malaria," Ban said.

Ban wants all African countries to have enough mosquito nets for everyone by the end of 2010, along with malaria clinics and treatment centres for high-risk pregnant women.

Although malaria kills most of its victims in sub-Saharan Africa, the disease also hits people in much of Asia, Latin America and the Middle East.

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