In the coming months we intend to publish status information for each potential distribution being assessed. Information will be presented in a format similar to that shown on our Future distributions page.
|
We are delighted to say GiveWell has just announced its updated top charity ranking... and AMF has been ranked #1 for the second year running!
GiveWell has said, "...of all the charitable interventions we know of that have clear room for more funding, this one has the strongest evidence of effectiveness and cost-effectiveness. AMF has outstanding self-evaluation and transparency. It first became our #1 charity in late 2011 and has continued to impress us."
|
Recently approved
We have approved a distribution of 250,000 nets in the districts of Balaka and Dedza in Malawi. The distribution would take sleeping space coverage levels from 30-60% (the level is currently unknown) to 90% and above. We are discussing the funding of non-net costs and the timing of the pre-distribution registration survey with our distribution partner. We expect the distribution to place before the end of Q1 2013.
more
Recently approved
We have approved a distribution of 250,000 nets in the districts of Balaka and Dedza in Malawi. The distribution would take sleeping space coverage levels from 30-60% (the level is currently unknown) to 90% and above. We are discussing the funding of non-net costs and the timing of the pre-distribution registration survey with our distribution partner. We expect the distribution to place before the end of Q1 2013.
The distribution partner is Concern Universal, Malawi, with whom we distributed 270,000 nets in Ntcheu district from January to April 2012. An NMCP coordinated distribution of nets took place in the districts in the middle of 2012. Further nets are required to achieve universal coverage.
Being assessed
We are assessing nine distributions of between 60,000 and 4 million nets each. The distributions are in Angola, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Malawi, Mali, Nigeria, Senegal and Sierra Leone. In one country we are lookng at several separate distributions. Assessments are at different stages.
The quantities of nets we are considering, with the country's estimated need in 2013 shown in brackets, are:
Angola - 500,000 to 1 million (3.2 million)
Burkina Faso - 500,000 to 1 million (8.6 million)
Cameroon - 500,000 (2.1 million)
Malawi - 500,000 to 1 million (500,000 to 1 million)
Mali - 500,000 (4 million)
Nigeria - 500,000 to 1.5 million (tens of millions)
Senegal - 60,000 (unclear)
Sierra Leone - 500,000 to 1 million (3.4 million)
This information and future updates can be found in our recently launched Future Distributions section.
|
We have not proceeded with three potential distributions being considered during 2012 in Malawi, Togo and Mali.
Malawi, 600,000 LLINs
Through January to June 2012 we offered to contribute 600,000 to 1 million nets to close the gap in nets required to achieve universal coverage. The NMCP would not progress discussions about sharing the extensive pre-distribution registration data they said they had. We considered it important for us to see to this information before contributing nets.
more
We have not proceeded with three potential distributions being considered during 2012 in Malawi, Togo and Mali.
Malawi, 600,000 LLINs
Through January to June 2012 we offered to contribute 600,000 to 1 million nets to close the gap in nets required to achieve universal coverage. The NMCP would not progress discussions about sharing the extensive pre-distribution registration data they said they had. We considered it important for us to see to this information before contributing nets.
Togo, 500,000 LLINs
Through January to August 2012, we offered to contribute 500,000 nets when there were no other sources of funding to fill the net gap to complete a universal coverage campaign. The offer was not accepted. The NMCP would not agree to a Pre-Distribution Registration Survey (PDRS) being carried out even though our Distribution Partner had agreed to do so and had agreed to fund it. The NMCP said they had conducted a universal coverage campaign on the basis of one net per two people and they did not want to change the basis of the distribution. We said if the data was good, we could agree to that being the basis of the distribution. We asked to see the data. No data was forthcoming. A PDRS was required in our view as the existing NMCP data was:
- for the number of people per household rather than the number of sleeping spaces (although not the best basis, we could have agreed to using this data if it were recently collected and accurate, with additional accuracy being sacrificed in order to achieve an immediate distribution and people protected); and
- gathered at least six months previously when discussions first began and at least 12 months old when we withdrew from discussions.
Mali, 500,000+ LLINs
Unrest and fighting, including killings, in Mali have led to security fears and safety concerns. Our distribution partner has on several occasions withdrawn staff from the country. This has put our potential contribution of nets on hold. New timing is unknown. The need is for 4 million nets.
We have learned it is important to progress more potential distributions at the same time to avoid a delay in converting funds to nets.
Is the failure to progress with these distributions a concern?
Yes, in that it has meant we have taken longer to convert funds into nets being distributed.
What would we do differently if faced with the same situation?
We would progress more potential distributions at the same time. We are doing that now. See below
Could this be indicative of what we might find when trying to do more large-scale distributions with the degree of accuracy, transparency and accountability we require?
We do not think so. What supports this is there is a significant need for nets and the results we have achieved in Ntcheu have generated interest. More distributions with similar results will help further.
|
We have received the third three-months set of post-distribution malaria case data following the February 2012 distribution of 270,000 nets in Ntcheu District, Malawi. The results continue to be good.
We have received the third three-months set of post-distribution malaria case data following the February 2012 distribution of 270,000 nets in Ntcheu District, Malawi. The results continue to be good.
A quick summary:
- The incidence of malaria in July, August and September 2012 were 41%, 47% and 35% lower than in the corresponding months of the prior year.
We will continue to collect and publish monthly malaria data and hope to see this decline in malaria rates continue.
|
While recent field trial results for the potential malaria vaccine RTS,S may be disappointing, it is worth noting this is important work and the science may well prove an important contributor to the eventual development of a successful, cost-effective malaria vaccine. From an editorial in The New England Journal Of Medicine by Johanna Daily:
more
While recent field trial results for the potential malaria vaccine RTS,S may be disappointing, it is worth noting this is important work and the science may well prove an important contributor to the eventual development of a successful, cost-effective malaria vaccine. From an editorial in The New England Journal Of Medicine by Johanna Daily:
“The results of this trial suggest that this candidate malaria vaccine is not ready to become part of the routine panel of infant immunizations. [AMF added bold] However, this trial did show protection in a subset of children and thus should be used as an opportunity to enlighten researchers regarding the host responses that correlate with vaccine protection. There are many vaccine candidates in the pipeline that use alternative parasite targets and vaccination strategies. Whether leaders in malaria-vaccine development will be able to support the costs needed to integrate sophisticated host-response studies or other value-added studies into these future vaccine trials remains to be seen. The results of this immunization trial suggest that a malaria vaccine is possible, but a more detailed understanding of effective host responses will be necessary to achieve this goal and avert the illnesses and deaths associated with this devastating infection for millions of children."
We hope significant funding will be directed to vaccine research for the five malaria parasites. While it is the case, currently, there has never been an effective vaccine against a parasite, there is reason to believe scientific research will lead to one being developed. The impact of such a vaccine could be hugely significant.
|
Everyone involved in malaria control has a fervent wish a malaria vaccine is found.
There is what could be bad news about one potential malaria vaccine.
more
Everyone involved in malaria control has a fervent wish a malaria vaccine is found.
There is what could be bad news about one potential malaria vaccine.
"An experimental malaria vaccine once thought promising is turning out to be a disappointment, with a new study showing it is only about 30 percent effective at protecting infants from the killer disease.
'If it turns out to have a clear 30 percent efficacy, it is probably not worth it to implement this in Africa on a large scale', said Genton Blaise, a malaria expert at the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute in Basel, who also sits on a WHO advisory board. He said the vaccine might work better under certain conditions but more research was needed.
Scientists have been working for decades to develop a malaria vaccine, a complicated endeavor since the disease is caused by five different species of parasites. There has never been an effective vaccine against a parasite. Worldwide, there are several dozen malaria vaccine candidates being researched.
Eleanor Riley of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said the vaccine might be useful if used together with other strategies, like bed nets. She was involved in an earlier study of the vaccine and had hoped for better results. 'We're all a bit frustrated that it has proven so hard to make a malaria vaccine,' she said. 'The question is how much money are the funders willing to keep throwing at it.'
WHO said it couldn't comment on the incomplete results and would wait until the trial was finished before drawing any conclusions."
|
Greece has reported a total of more than 70 cases of malaria since the beginning of the year. This is worrying. However, given the relative economic wealth and levels of sanitation and other health services in Greece compared to many African and other malaria affected countries, it can be expected this outbreak can be contained. Read more
|