Over 6m nets to be distributed against malaria in Madagascar

More than 6 million nets with insecticides will be distributed in 61 out of 119 districts in Madagascar in 2013, a statement from the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) said on Tuesday. The campaign of distribution of these nets began on Monday in the town of Moramanga, east of Madagascar's capital Antananarivo. There will be 150,000 nets to be distributed to more than 328, 000 people in Moramanga, including 59,000 children under five and 14,200 pregnant women. For years, Madagascar has spared no efforts to fight against malaria. The nets impregnated with insecticides prove effective in the prevention of malaria, according to Minister of Public Health Johanita Ndahimananjara. UNICEF officials say the mass distribution of nets began in Madagascar in 2007 and was in 2009 and 2010. Malaria interventions have saved 35,000 children under five since 2001.