Three stepping stones leading to malaria elimination, changing world maps on the way.

Abstract

Over the course of human history, malaria has been one of the deadliest tropical diseases encountered by humans. Malaria exerts a far more profound influence on progress toward a peaceful life in a given country than have any of the acute epidemic diseases, such as yellow fever. This is because a population stricken with malaria may suffer two negative pressures: acute fatalities from severe malaria, particularly in young children, and long-lasting debilitating symptoms and socio-economic impacts of recurrent and persistent malaria. Here, we present three successive historical stories, stepping stones, the second and third stones having learnt from the previous one, and which was to eventually lead to successful malaria elimination. Each country map tells its own story of change made possible only by an anti-malaria activity.