§ Mrs. SpelmanTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much money his Department will give(a) for medicines to fight malaria and (b) to research into affordable anti-malarials in 2003–04. [133551]
§ Hilary BennDFID is strongly committed to meeting the Millennium Development Goal to halt and begin to reverse the incidence of malaria by 2015, recognising the importance of malaria, not just in terms of disease burden, but also the potential it has to undermine economic growth and human development.
Since 1998, DFID has provided in excess of £110 million to support malaria control activities globally and at country-level. This includes support to Roll Back Malaria, an international partnership to reduce competition and duplication of effort, develop technical consensus, increase political commitment and raise the profile of malaria.
As DFID contributes to a broad based effort to tackle this complex disease, it is not possible to break down our spend to show amounts spent on medicines for malaria by year. Our support at international level is to initiatives which support general malaria control activities and at country level provides finance to governments, either as support to particular sectors or direct into governments' budgets. Our commitment to combating malaria was reaffirmed in May 2003 with our pledge to increase our commitment to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria to US$280 million. Successful implementation of existing Global Fund proposals will result in the number of treatments for resistant malaria in Africa increasing from 15,000 to four million annually and also result in the purchase of seven and a half million insecticide treated nets over the next two years. These nets offer substantial protection against malaria.
Despite the great complexity of malaria, it remains a disease that is preventable, treatable and curable. DFID is committed to supporting national governments and partners ensure that effective drugs and commodities are accessible to the poor. We have committed over £1.5 billion since 1997 to strengthen health systems to deliver vital drugs and health care treatment. In malaria endemic countries a significant part of drug spend will be for anti malarials.
DFID also provides support to the Medical Research Council and initiatives such as the Medicines for Malaria Venture (£1 million in 2003–04) to help to find new low cost malaria treatments.