The APMEN newsletter aims to provide regular updates o­n Network activities and news o­n P.vivax and elimination efforts in the Asia Pacific region.

APLMA move forward with elimination roadmap

Following the  Asia Pacific Leaders' Malaria Alliance (APLMA) Senior Officials Meeting in Manila, Philippines in July, APMEN has been working with our Country Partners representatives to support in country understanding, and provide briefings regarding the APLMA Road Map. The Roadmap is a high-level political tool which provides a plan for implementing the APLMA Task Force Recommendations and achieving the goal of an Asia Pacific free of malaria by 2030 . It focuses o­n: governance and accountability; access to quality medicines and services; and financing the regional effort  and closely aligns with most APMEN Country Partners national malaria strategies and with  the  WHO Global Technical Strategy for Malaria Post-2015, and WHO GMS Elimination Strategy 2015-2030.

Also during the meeting, former Indonesian Minister of Health, Dr Nafsiah Mboi, was announced as APLMA Envoy. Her role as APLMA Envoy will be to lead strategic priority-setting for APLMA and guide APLMA's engagement in global health diplomacy and country-level political engagement.

See more APLMA news and events here.

Read the Keynote speech from ADB Vice-President Stephen Groff here.

Papua New Guinea joins APMEN!

APMEN is pleased to announce that Papua New Guinea has joined APMEN as the network's 18th Country Partner. This commitment to malaria elimination is an important milestone for PNG as it celebrates 40 years of independence this week.
          This partnership will strengthen the globally recognized push for the region to become malaria-free by 2030. National Department of Health Secretary Pascoe Kase, said the partnership with APMEN had been a priority for quite some time and is pleased the collaboration has become official.

"The PNG National Department of Health sees the partnership with APMEN as an avenue to develop technical knowledge and expertise to deal with the challenges of pre-elimination and then elimination of malaria. In return, PNG has in-depth experience and knowledge of working with the private sector for elimination in some of our provinces, and this information could be useful to the country partners of APMEN."

Upcoming Vivax meeting

APMEN Vivax Working Group Annual Meeting 12 and13 Octoberin Bangkok Thailand. Agenda includes: 

· Sub-microscopic P. vivax infections and molecular detection methods

· Malaria Microscopy Quality Control in Research

· Roadblock o­n the way to elimination: Sub microscopic malaria

· Technical Brief o­n Control and Elimination of P. vivax malaria and the VxWG agenda

For more information please contact kylie.mannion@menzies.edu.au. APMEN would like to thank MMV for their financial support for this meeting.

Financing for malaria elimination prioritized: RBM Action and Investment (AIM) Report launched

Image: Roll Back Malaria

World leaders at the  3rd International Financing for Development (FfD) met in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia o­n 13 Julyto discuss the new World Health Assembly endorsed Global Technical Strategy for Malaria 2016-2030 and the Roll Back Malaria Partnership?s Action and Investment to defeat Malaria 2016-2030 (AIM) - for a malaria-free world. Together, these documents provide technical guidance and a framework for action and investment to achieve the ambitious malaria elimination targets outlined in the forthcoming United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

On the release of this comprehensive new vision, the United Nations Secretary-General, BAN-Ki-moon noted: "Reaching our 2030 global malaria goals will not o­nly save millions of lives, it will reduce poverty and create healthier, more equitable societies. Ensuring the continued reduction and elimination of malaria will generate benefits for entire communities, businesses, agriculture, health systems and households."

Read the full RBM press release here.

Read Malaria No More article, 'Global leaders call for increased financing to end malaria under post-2015 development agenda' here.

Upcoming Events

APMEN attends Science of Eradication course in Boston

Three representatives sponsored by APMEN attended the Science of Eradication: Malaria courses held a few months ago, in Boston, USA.

The course was held at the Harvard Business School, and coordinated by the academic consortium of Harvard T.H Chan School of Public Health, the Barcelona Institute for Global Health, and the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, with funding from several other organizations.

Three representatives from APMEN attended the course - Dr Lyndes Wini (Solomon Islands), Dr Ummi Shamsudin (Malaysia) and Dr Sanchai Chasombat (Thailand) - where they contributed to and participated in lively discussions about the Asia Pacific regional strategies toward malaria elimination, and gave particular example from their respective national country programmes.

Read more about the course in the article, 'Coordinating against malaria', in the Harvard Gazette.

Publications Alert from the AP region

For more relevant news & resources from the Asia Pacific, click here.

UN launches 2015 MDG report

The Millennium Development Goals Report 2015 will be launched by the Secretary-General o­n 6 July 2015. The report provides a final assessment of global and regional progress towards the MDGs. The report showcased  gains against malaria and all goals in the last 15 years, and highlights the many successes across the globe, but acknowledges the gaps that remain.  View/download the report here.

Treatment policy change to dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine contributes to the reduction of adverse maternal and pregnancy outcomes 

The study shows that the introduction of highly effective treatment in pregnancy was associated with a reduction of maternal malaria at delivery and improved neonatal outcomes. Ensuring universal access to arteminisin combination therapy (ACT) in pregnancy in an area of multidrug resistance has potential to impact significantly o­n maternal and infant health.Read the full Malaria Journal paper here.

A comprehensive assessment of the malaria microscopy system of Aceh, Indonesia, in preparation for malaria elimination 

The study highlights the importance of careful assessment of diagnostic capacity when embarking upon a large-scale malaria elimination programme, and recommends that Aceh will need to embark o­n a large-scale comprehensive quality assurance scheme if it is to achieve malaria elimination. Read the full paper in Malaria Journal here.

Malaria and the mobile and migrant population in Cambodia: a population movement framework to inform strategies for malaria control and elimination

This paper describes the process of defining MMPs in Cambodia, identifying the different activities and related risks to appropriately target and tailor interventions to the highest risk groups. The framework has been used to develop more targeted behaviour change and outreach interventions for MMPs in Cambodia and its utility and effectiveness will be evaluated as part of those interventions.Read the Malaria Journal article here.

Malaria in Zhejiang Province, China, from 2005 to 2014

This study analysed epidemiological characteristics of malaria in Zhejiang Province, China. A total of 2,738 malaria cases were identified in Zhejiang Province from 2005 to 2014, of which 2,018 were male and 720 were female. Notably, o­nly 7% of malaria cases were indigenous and the other cases were all imported. The number of malaria cases increased from 2005 to 2007, peaked in 2007, and then decreased from 2007 to 2011. Of all cases, 68% of cases contracted Plasmodium vivax, 27% of cases contracted P. falciparum, and two cases contracted P. malariae. The median age was 33 years, and 1,892 cases occurred in persons aged 20?50 years.  Read the full paper in AJTMH o­nline

Establishment of the Ivermectin Research for Malaria Elimination Network: updating the research agenda 

This study investigated the potential use of ivermectin as an additional vector control tool. This report summarizes the emerging evidence presented at a side meeting o­n "Ivermectin for malaria elimination: current status and future directions" at the annual meeting of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene in New Orleans o­n November 4, 2014. o­ne outcome was the creation of the "Ivermectin Research for Malaria Elimination Network" whose main goal is to establish a common research agenda to generate the evidence base o­n whether ivermectin-based strategies should be added to the emerging arsenal to interrupt malaria transmission.View/download the provisional pdf form Malaria Journal here.

The evidence for improving housing to reduce malaria: a systematic review and meta-analysis

This study indicates that housing is an important risk factor for malaria. Future research should evaluate the protective effect of specific house features and incremental housing improvements associated with socio-economic development.Read the full paper inMalaria Journal here.

ICYMI: World Health Organization release Guidelines for malaria treatment

The core principles underpinning this edition include: early diagnosis and prompt, effective treatment; rational use of antimalarial treatment to ensure that o­nly confirmed malaria cases receive antimalarials; the use of combination therapy in preventing or delaying development of resistance; and appropriate weight-based dosing of antimalarials to ensure prolonged useful therapeutic life and an equal chance of being cured for all patients. View/download the Guidelines here.

Other news »

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• The collaborative mission of IMPE-QN, WHO, and RAI investigates malaria situation in Khanh Hoa province (11/28/2023)
• IMPE-QN cooperated with Korea's leading universities in Bio-health research and training (11/20/2023)
• IMPE-QN welcomes international units to visit and exchange research cooperation (06/05/2023)
• MOU Signing Ceremony and Joint Scientific Seminar between the Institute of Malariology, Parasitology and Entomology and Gyeongsang National University (Republic of Korea) (12/09/2022)
• US Naval Medical Research Unit (NAMRU-2) visits to and exchanges research cooperation with IMPE-QN (08/16/2022)