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starting from dar es salaam, the largest city in tanzania, it takes five or six hours to drive to the rufiji river, 200 kilometers away. the river near the estuary appears very calm, flashing a soft light under the sunlight, reflecting the dense tropical forests and vast wetlands on both sides.

however, there is a killer hidden under this peaceful situation. after the rainy season every year, a large amount of silt accumulates on both sides of the rufiji river, and mosquitoes that can spread malaria breed and multiply in the swamps. in the past, the malaria incidence rate in rufiji county was twice the national average of tanzania, and tanzania is one of the countries with the most serious malaria in africa.

since 2015, chinese public health experts have come to rufiji county and worked hard to bring the "chinese experience" of malaria control to the african continent. together with their partners, they have adapted the experience to local conditions and transformed it into a new malaria control model that is suitable for local operations. at the end of the first phase of the project in 2018, the malaria infection rate in some villages had dropped by 81%.

although malaria still exists in the area, villagers no longer "change color when talking about malaria". dr. jerry polo, medical director of the ikwiriri health center in rufiji county, told the first financial reporter that the number of malaria cases has dropped significantly compared with the past. for example, in july this year, there were only 5 to 6 cases for consultation, while in the past, it would account for 30% to 40% of the number of cases. the more common diseases now are upper respiratory tract infections and pneumonia.

researcher wang duoquan, deputy director of the global health services center of the institute of parasitic diseases prevention and control of the chinese center for disease control and prevention, who is in charge of the tanzania project, told the first financial reporter that in addition to reducing the local malaria burden, the project also yielded a new malaria elimination model suitable for local africa. in addition, it is the first time that china has launched public health assistance in africa under a tripartite cooperation model.