Zambia Demographic and Health Survey 2001-2002 - Measure DHS

MALARIA10Miriam Chipimo and Richard Banda10.1 INTRODUCTIONMalaria is endemic throughout Zambia and continues to be a major public health concern. It is theleading cause of morbidity and second highest cause of mortality, especially among pregnant women andchildren under the age of five. The Ministry of Health (MoH) estimates that there are more than 3.5 millioncases and 50,000 deaths per year. Malaria accounts for 37 percent of all out-patient attendance in Zambia.Since 1999, Zambia has been involved in the international efforts to control malaria under the RollBack Malaria (RBM) initiative (CBOH, MOH, and RBM, 2001). The goals of the initiative aim at ensuringthat by the year 2005 at least 60 percent of those at risk of malaria, particularly pregnant women and childrenunder five benefit from the most suitable combination of personal and community protective measures such asinsecticide-treated mosquito nets (ITNs) and other interventions, which are accessible and affordable toprevent infection and suffering. Another goal is at least 60 percent of all pregnant women who are at risk ofmalaria, especially those in their first pregnancies, to have access to chemoprophylaxis or preventiveintermittent treatment.10.1.1 Ownership of Mosquito NetsThe ownership and use of mosquitonets, both treated and untreated is the primaryhealth intervention for reducing malaria transmissionand morbidity in a community prone tomalaria-carrying mosquitoes.Table 10.1 shows that 27 percent ofhouseholds in Zambia own a mosquito net, with14 percent owning an ITN and 5 percent havingsoaked or dipped their net at least once. About10 percent of households own more than onenet. Urban households are more likely to ownany kind of net (35 percent) compared with therural households (23 percent). Fourteen percentof urban households report owning more thanone net compared with 8 percent of ruralhouseholds. Mosquito net ownership is highestin Luapula province (34 percent) and lowest inSouthern province (20 percent). Households inSouthern (6 percent) and Central provinces(7 percent) report the lowest ownership of ITNs,while Luapula (25 percent) and North-Westernprovinces (23 percent) have the highest level ofITN ownership.Table 10.1 Ownership of mosquito netsPercentage of households with at least one mosquito net (treated oruntreated), and percentage of households that have more than one net, bybackground characteristics, Zambia 2001-2002BackgroundcharacteristicPercent of households thathave at least one netInsecticidetreatedEversoakedordippedAnytypePercentageof householdsthathave morethan onenetNumberof householdsResidenceUrban 16.1 5.3 34.9 14.3 2,437Rural 12.4 4.5 23.3 7.5 4,689ProvinceCentral 7.2 2.3 23.6 10.2 490Copperbelt 14.7 4.5 30.1 11.5 1,221Eastern 12.3 14.0 25.7 11.9 999Luapula 25.1 4.4 33.7 10.3 652Lusaka 11.7 3.6 29.3 9.4 976Northern 12.1 2.8 21.3 6.9 1,028North-Western 23.0 2.3 32.1 10.0 371Southern 6.2 2.8 20.3 7.0 734Western 15.6 2.0 31.6 11.0 656Total 13.6 4.8 27.2 9.8 7,126Malaria │ 155