REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, TIMIKA -- The district administration of Mimika, Papua, is set to free the regency of the contagious disease malaria in 2018 earlier than previously set target in 2028.

Mimika acting regent Ausilius You said support from anyone or institutions is needed to eradicate malaria, which is still a common disease in the regency.

Malaria is transferred and spread by anopheline mosquitoes.

You said he had invited the Department of Public Health & Malaria Control (PHMC) of PT Freeport Indonesia, the district health service and other related agencies to discuss way of accelerating efforts to eradicate the disease in Mimika.

PT Freeport Indonesia is an Indonesian unit of the US mining giant Freeport McMoRun Copper & Gold operating large copper and gold mines in Papua.

"According to the district's strategic plan (Renstra) Mimika could be free of malaria only in 2028, but I want the time target set earlier that before the National Sports Week is held in Papua in 2020, Mimika would be free of the disease," he said here on Tuesday.

Head of the Mimika district health service Ibrahim Iba said in a bid to cope with malaria in Mimika, the health service would launch a week long campaign to ask the people to use mosquito nets.

The health service has procured tens of thousands of mosquito nets sprayed with insecticides for the local people.

When visiting Timika last week, Health Minister dr Nafsiah Mboi praised the seriousness shown by the district administration to eradicate malaria.

Nafsiah said currently there were 200 regencies in Indonesia already free of malaria and 117 other districts areas are expected to be declared free of the disease.

She said there are still five provinces in Indonesia having high cases of malaria.

The five provinces are Papua, West Papua, East Nusa Tenggara, Maluku and North Maluku , where malaria is still common disease.

In the province of Papua , around 42.6 of 1,000 people have suffered from malaria.

The highest rate was recorded by the regency of Keerom where 317.18 of 1,000 people have suffered from malaria and Mimika came second with 246.8 of 1,000 people.

"Hard work is needed to reduce the cases," the minister said.

She said it should not be too difficult to carry out the program to free Mimika of the disease as the PHMC of PT Freeport Indonesia already has long experience fighting malaria in Kuala Kencana and areas around it.

She said eradication of malaria had to be carried out from upstream to downstream, by maintaining healthy environment, killing the mosquito larva through fogging and with abate, regular blood test and the use of mosquito nets.

The minister lauded the policy of Papua Governor Lukas Enembe who set aside 15 percent of the fund for Papua Special Autonomy to finance health program.

"If that (the program) could be fully implemented, there should be substantially large amount of fund available for health sector development in Papua," she said.

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