Health leaders across West Africa have called for a unified, multi-sectoral and data-driven approach to eliminate malaria, warning that fragmented interventions and inefficient resource use continue to hinder progress.
The call was made on Monday at the 27th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Health Ministers of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in Freetown, Sierra Leone, where stakeholders described malaria as the region’s leading cause of death.
Despite decades of interventions, participants said the disease persists due to disjointed strategies and weak cross-sector coordination.
Sierra Leone’s Minister of Health and Sanitation, Austin Demby, stressed that eliminating malaria would require collective regional action, stronger political commitment, and the integration of key response pillars such as financing, vector control, vaccination, diagnostics, treatment, and community engagement.
He noted that past efforts had been undermined by siloed approaches.
“Financing, insecticide resistance, vaccine deployment, and treatment strategies are handled in isolation rather than as interconnected components of a single response framework,” he said.
Demby emphasised that success would depend on a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach, involving ministries beyond health, including finance, environment, water and sanitation, gender, and communication.
He also called for stronger regional solidarity, citing countries that have eliminated malaria through coordinated national efforts, and urged West Africa to act collectively to achieve similar outcomes.
A major focus of the meeting was domestic resource mobilisation as a cornerstone of health sovereignty.
Director-General of the West African Health Organisation (WAHO), Melchior Athanase Aïssi, said while external funding remains important, countries must increasingly finance malaria programmes sustainably from within.
He cautioned, however, that increased funding alone would not guarantee success without efficient utilisation.
“There are resources, but we must use them better. Even as we mobilise domestic funding, we must ensure every investment delivers measurable impact,” he said.
Aïssi also highlighted the critical role of real-time data in shaping effective interventions, urging countries to adopt systems that enable continuous tracking of progress, identification of gaps, and timely adjustment of strategies.
“With near real-time data, we can scale what works and stop what does not. This is how limited resources can go further,” he added, noting that improved data use would enhance accountability and transparency.
He further called for stronger regional accountability mechanisms to ensure ministerial commitments translate into concrete national actions, and hinted at ongoing discussions on innovative financing, including possible regional funding frameworks.
He also urged governments to uphold commitments under the Abuja Declaration to boost health sector funding.
The meeting is expected to produce actionable resolutions to accelerate malaria elimination across the ECOWAS region, with a focus on coordination, efficiency, and measurable outcomes.
Participants expressed optimism that sustained political will, integrated strategies, and effective data use could significantly reduce — and ultimately eliminate — malaria in West Africa.
The previous, 26th Assembly prioritised a people-centred healthcare approach, adopting a Regional Community Health Policy to advance Universal Health Coverage. It also progressed a regional strategy on Lassa fever and renewed calls for local vaccine production, pooled procurement, and sustainable domestic financing to reduce reliance on external donors.
Ministers also approved WAHO’s annual report, noting gains in regional health security, and endorsed continued dialogue on malaria elimination as a standing agenda item.
