Regional Malaria Forum of Parliamentarians and Civil Society Leaders : Building Malaria Accountability

Parliamentarians and CSOs from the High Burden High Impact countries together in Yaounde

On March 6th 2024, Ministers of Health from the countries mostly affected by malaria in Africa met in Yaounde, Cameroon, in a Malaria Ministerial Conference organized by the World Health Organization and countries to recommit to accelerate the malaria fight. By signing the Yaounde Declaration, countries pledged to:

• Provide stronger leadership and increased domestic funding for malaria control programmes;

•  Strengthen health systems, with a focus on primary health care; ensure more effective use of data;

• Apply the latest technical guidance in malaria control and elimination;
•  Enhance coordination and multisectoral collaboration; and
•  Build partnerships for funding, research and innovations.

On March 5th and 7th, around the ministerial conference, more than 80 Parliamentarians and Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) representatives from malaria High Burden High Impact countries met in a forum organized by Impact Santé Afrique (ISA) and CS4ME in Yaounde to discuss their role in the malaria fight and the accountability mechanism to follow-up on the commitment the countries have made. Key outcomes of the forum include:

1. Civil Society and Parliamentarians were updated on malaria by Experts (from the World Health Organization – WHO, Pan-African Mosquito Control Association – PAMCA, the Global Fund…) on the malaria situation and strategies that work, current threats to the fight, climate change and resistance issues, solutions and innovation tools such as malaria vaccines, the lack of status of Community Health Workers, etc.
2. Parliamentarians and Civil Society Organizations pledged to monitor commitments in the Yaounde declaration through the accountability mechanism validated at the forum.
3. The birth of COPEMA: As a highlight of this forum, Parliamentarians came together to officially announce the launch of the Coalition of Parliamentarians for Ending Malaria in Africa (COPEMA). This coalition is a panAfrican initiative through which will receive timely information on malaria progress and gaps so that they can effectively advocate for policies and resources needed to achieve countries’ malaria elimination strategies.

4. Spreading the word around the Yaounde Declaration: Participants recognized the importance of widely disseminating the Yaounde Declaration at the country level, including translating it into local languages. This step aims to raise awareness among a larger number of local leaders, media, and community actors.