Thailand to eradicate malaria within 10 years

BANGKOK, February 15 (TNA) - The government has set a 10-year timeframe for eradicating malaria out of Thailand. Thai Deputy Prime Minister Admiral Narong Pipattanasai told journalists of the target on Monday, after the first meeting this year of the national command committee on malaria eradication. Admiral Narong said the meeting laid out four strategies on malaria eradication, covering malaria control and eradication, as well as the assignment of the National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA) and the National Research Council of Thailand (NRCT) to conduct research for anti-malaria medication. According to the deputy prime minister, Thai health authorities have successfully control the spreading of malaria and have set the 10-year target for malaria eradication as the next step, through the elimination of anopheles mosquitoes, the carrier of the deadly disease, and their breeding sources. The Thai deputy premier noted that the meeting also approved a budget of 2.3 billion baht to support the malaria eradication plan over the next five years. In 2017 alone, the Thai deputy prime minister revealed, a budget of about 509 million baht will be used to implement the plan, coupled with a financial support of about 211 million baht from the Geneva-based World Health Organisation (WHO), which will be the last sum of financial assistance from WHO as Thailand's status has already been raised to be among countries with higher national income. (TNA)