Though rate of deaths caused by malaria has marked a significant fall in the country, three districts in Chattogram Hill Tracts- Rangamati, Bandarban and Khagrachhari are still at risk.
Shortage of physicians and healthcare professionals in remote areas, people's increased mobility, increased risk of malarial infection in border areas and climate change impacts have been identified as major challenges for malaria prevention, health experts said.
They also said information dissemination is very difficult due to poor communication facilities, language barrier, target-based (e.g.-Jhum cultivators, forest workers, etc) programme implementation difficulties, social stigma (dependency on traditional healer, superstitions), ignorance, delay in seeking treatment and non-immune travellers.
Tourists are also the challenges for controlling the disease, they added.
Three districts-- Bandarban, Rangamati and Khagrachhari are in considerable risk of malaria although much has been achieved in checking the menace of the mosquito-borne disease.
According to DG health, 15 million people are still at risk of getting affected with malaria in the country.
According to the National Malaria Elimination Programme (NECP), currently 93 per cent of the country's 29,237 malaria patients are from the three hill districts.
The major reasons for these districts to have high malaria incidence are their hilly frontiers, profuse rain, large forest areas, inadequacy in healthcare system and problems faced while reaching treatment and other healthcare services.
Under the circumstances, Bangladesh will observe 'World Malaria Day 2018' with the theme 'Ready to beat malaria' today (Wednesday).
A press conference was jointly organised on Tuesday at the National Press Club by National Malaria Elimination Programme and BRAC to mark the World Malaria Day 2018.
Director general of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) Professor Dr Abul Kalam Azad, Director of the government Disease Control Unit and also line director of Communicable Disease Control unit Prof (Dr) Sanya Tahmina, director of BRAC's Communicable Diseases, WASH and DMCC programmes Dr Md Akramul Islam, and head of its communicable diseases and WASH programmes Dr Moktadir Kabir spoke, among others, at the press briefing.
DGHS epidemiologist Dr Md Mosiqure Rahman moderated the press conference.
DGHS deputy programme manager for malaria and aedes transmitted diseases Dr MM Aktaruzzaman presented the keynote.
Malaria, one of the major public health problems of Bangladesh, has plagued 71 upazilas of 13 districts, namely Rangamati, Khagrachhari, Bandarban, Cox's Bazar, Chattogram, Sunamganj, Moulvibazar, Sylhet, Habiganj, Netrakona, Mymensingh, Sherpur and Kurigram although the death rates have fallen significantly.
Bandarban is the highest epidemic district having 60 per cent of the total patients in three hill districts.
Specially, areas like Alikadam, Lama, Ruma and Thanchi are the most vulnerable.
Professor Dr Abul Kalam Azad said, "Our goal is to eliminate malaria completely from Bangladesh by the year 2030. To achieve this goal, we are working to prevent the disease in eight among the 13 vulnerable districts.
Dr Sanya Tahmina said, "We have already formulated a guideline for the travellers of the hilly regions that will help reduce their risk to contract malaria."
The government has also undertaken an initiative to distribute 0.33 million mosquito nets in the hilly regions and among the Rohingya refugees in Cox's Bazar. A procession will be brought out today (Wednesday) from Zero Point in the capital and it will end at CIRDAP.
A discussion will be held at 11:00 am at the CIRDAP Auditorium to mark the day.
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