The World Health Organization is warning that the battle against malaria in sub-Saharan Africa could be set back by 20 years as countries focus energy and resources on containing the coronavirus.
The WHO says new projections indicate that in a worst-case scenario, 769,000 people could die of malaria in sub-Saharan Africa this year as campaigns to combat it are interrupted.
That’s more than double the deaths in the last detailed count two years ago and would be the worst figures for the region since 2000.
The WHO's Africa regional director says that “We must not turn back the clock.”
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