𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 𝐎𝐫𝐠𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐳𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 (𝐖𝐇𝐎) 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐝𝐞𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐄𝐠𝐲𝐩𝐭 𝐌𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐚-𝐅𝐫𝐞𝐞.

On October 20, 2024, the World Health Organization (WHO), a specialized agency of the United Nations that oversees worldwide public health, declared Egypt malaria-free for the first time in nearly a century.

In order to receive WHO certification as malaria-free, a nation must demonstrate beyond a reasonable doubt that the chain of local transmission of all human malaria parasites has been broken nationwide for at least the last three years and that it has a fully operational surveillance and response system in place that can stop the re-establishment of indigenous transmission.

Following nearly a century of devoted efforts by the country, which has a population of over 100 million, Egypt has achieved a remarkable triumph in the fight against malaria, according to the WHO. Millions of Egyptians have been affected by this illness over time.

In response to this noteworthy accomplishment, WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus says Egypt’s certification as malaria-free is a historic milestone that demonstrates the nation’s resolve to eradicate this ancient scourge and will serve as a model for other nations in the region. Egypt is the first nation to accomplish this milestone since 2010, he continued, and the third in the Eastern Mediterranean Region after Morocco and the United Arab Emirates.

The Deputy Prime Minister of Egypt, H.E. Dr. Khaled Abdel Ghaffar, celebrated this accomplishment by stating that they will keep up the efforts to improve and protect Egypt’s healthcare system.