Health official emphasizes increase in malaria, AIDS, and TB incidence. International (Zimbabwe)

Zimbabwe has recorded more than 255,000 cases of malaria since the rainy season began last November, 1996. Almost 500 infected people have died of the disease. The death toll from malaria during the same period a year ago was 200; in all, over 2000 people died of malaria in 1996. The increase in disease incidence is attributed to the especially wet rainy season Zimbabwe is experiencing this year. Conditions are favorable for the disease-carrying mosquitoes to breed. Timothy Stamps, Zimbabwe's Minister of Health and Child Welfare, announced these figures at the Medic Africa 1997 exhibition held in Harare on April 16, 1997. According to an article by Segun Adeyemi, a Panafrican News Agency correspondent, Stamps told "some of the continent's top scientists attending [the exhibition] that the health challenges facing African and other developing countries [remain] as daunting as ever." HIV/AIDS research updates also were presented at the exhibition, a 3-day international medical event which includes conferences and seminars presented primarily by research scientists. According to Adeyemi, Stamps told his audience that "the HIV/AIDS pandemic continues to decimate critical human resources and overwhelm the health care system with no respite in sight." "Coupled with that," Adeyemi wrote, "was the vengeful return of tuberculosis, which had since become more difficult to treat and cure. The disease had hitherto been brought under control through immunization and multi-drug therapy."