New Strain of Malaria Raises Concerns for Missionaries in Africa
A new strain of malaria that appears to be resistant to most affordable medications has raised the concerns of missionaries, local residents in Sub-Saharan Africa, and the World Health Organization.
A new strain of malaria that appears to be resistant to most affordable medications has raised the concerns of missionaries, local residents in Sub-Saharan Africa, and the World Health Organization.
Malaria, a life-threatening parasitic disease transmitted by mosquitoes, is responsible for the deaths of more than 1 million people every year, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa. Ninety percent of the victims are children under 5, according to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.
Prior to the discovery of the new strain, sources say malaria in sub-Saharan Africa was already highly resistant to anti-malarial drugs with around half of cases no longer treatable. In Madagascar, resistance is about 20 percent, but is expected to rise steeply.
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"A certain combination of drugs is the only thing the doctors are saying is having any affect against this strain and it's expensive, which puts it out of range for many of the nationals where we are working," Teen Missions International's Steve Peterson told Mission Network News (MNN).
While drugs are available for their missionary staff in Africa, Teen Missions International and other mission agencies are still concerned.
"Teen Missions is very concerned for our national staff, our Bible school students, and many of the orphans that we minister to in-country,” Peterson said. According to MNN, Teen Missions International currently holds boot camps in Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
“There just isn't funding available to fight this on a wide scale," he added.
Although their boot camps haven't been affected, Teen Missions International has 2,000 orphans they're taking care of and they “need to come up with an answer fast.”
Peterson reported that some of their people in Zambia have already been hit with the disease, and is asking Christians to pray.
