News

Maplecroft Malaria Risk Index dominated by African countries

19/01/2010

Africa is home to over 80% of the countries most at risk from the impacts of malaria, according to new research released by global risks analyst, Maplecroft.

The Malaria Risk Index (MRI) assesses the human and economic impacts of the disease on the 101 most affected countries. It uses 10 indicators to calculate the ranking, including estimated numbers of cases and deaths, coverage of insecticide treated nets, indoor residual spraying, analysis of anti-malarial drug use, and Maplecroft’s own Capacity to Contain Infectious Diseases Index.

Of the 35 countries at extreme or high risk from the disease, 29 are located in Africa.

DR Congo (1), Angola (2), Burkino Faso (4), Togo (5), Comoros (6) and Chad (7) are the African nations rated at extreme risk, whilst Ghana (8), Kenya (10), Nigeria (20) and Zimbabwe (21) feature in the high risk category.

Malaria Risk Index 2010

Legend
Extreme risk
High risk
Medium risk
Low risk
No Data

Rank	Country	Category
1	DRC	Extreme
2	Angola	Extreme
3	Yemen	Extreme
4	Burkina	Extreme
5	Togo	High

Rank	Country	Category
6	Comoros	Extreme
7	Chad	Extreme
8	Ghana	High
9	Niger	High
10	Kenya	High

© Maplecroft 2010

“Africa is most vulnerable to the burden of malaria because of favourable breeding conditions and inadequate resources to protect the population from its spread. This is primarily due to low levels of development and widespread poverty. Low incomes, limited education and poor access to health care reduce the ability of people to engage in malaria control and access treatment. In turn malaria perpetuates poverty, keeping children from attending school and parents from engaging in economically productive activities.”

- Fiona Place, Environmental Analyst of Maplecroft

Other significant factors in a country’s vulnerability to malaria include conflict, displacement, hunger and high rates of HIV.

The MRI has been developed by Maplecroft for international organisations to assess the potential impacts of the disease on their operations, supply chains and distribution networks. Malaria is an important issue for the business and NGO communities as costs relating to worker absenteeism, health care and retraining of replacement workforce can rise in infected areas. Risks of contracting malaria can also deter investment and have negative impacts on tourism.

The only non-African countries rated at extreme or high risk are Yemen (3), Papua New Guinea (13), Pakistan (14), Myanmar (22), Nepal (30) and Haiti (34).

Haiti’s rating is expected to rise following the recent earthquake and displacement of large proportions of its populace.