Rayleigh and Wickford MP, Mark Francois, recently attended a special meeting at which he and other MPs were briefed on the recently issued World Malaria Report 2014 and the latest progress in the battle against this terrible disease.
Malaria has killed more people throughout history than any other disease, including influenza but, in the Millennium Development Goals some years ago, nations across the world pledged to help fight the disease both by providing medical support and modern treatments to help arrest its spread.
As the report points out there has been some success in this battle and the incidents of Malaria across the world have almost halved since 2000. Mark takes a special interest in fighting this disease since he visited Sierra Leone last autumn in his capacity as Minister of State for the Armed Forces and learned about how international health workers are fighting the disease in West Africa, as well as fighting the Ebola virus.
Speaking about his attendance at the event, Mark Francois said:
"Malaria is a major killer particularly in poorer countries, and fighting it is something I have taken an interest in since visiting Sierra Leone last year. It is very encouraging to see in this year’s World Malaria Report that we have managed to cut the prevalence of the disease in half in only 14 years but there is much more to do and I will continue to show my support in the battle against this terrible disease both in Parliament and in my work at the Ministry of Defence."