China Declared As 'Malaria-free' By WHO After 70 Years Fight

World Health Organization (WHO) declared China as ‘malaria-free’ on Wednesday after a 70-year effort to eliminate the mosquito-borne disease.

The country reported 30 million cases of malaria annually back in the 1940s but didn’t report an indigenous case for four consecutive years.

"We congratulate China’s citizens on eradication the country of malaria," stated WHO director-general ‘Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus’.

"Their success was hard-earned, and they achieved it only followed by decades of targeted and sustained struggle. China with this announcement now becomes part of the growing number of countries which by their efforts, are showing the world that a malaria-free future is a possible objective."

Countries that have accomplished a minimum of three consecutive years of zero indigenous cases are eligible to apply for WHO certification of malaria-free status. They must show some rigorous evidence with the demonstration of the capacity to prevent malaria’s re-emerging.

China is now the 40th territory certified malaria-free by the agency of the United Nations ‘WHO’.

The last countries which achieved this status were El Salvador (2021), Algeria (2019), Argentina (2019), and Paraguay and Uzbekistan (2018).

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However, 61 countries are in a separate list where malaria never existed or was eliminated without taking any specific measures.