China's Ministry of Health announced Friday it has mapped out a draft plan to largely eradicate malaria by the end of 2015.

The major goal of the 2010-2015 plan is to reduce the incidence of malaria to below one confirmed case for every 10,000 people in the most seriously affected regions, and to zero in less affected areas.

The plan requires local health departments and medical institutions to use diagnostic technology, standardized treatment and health education to help prevent the disease more effectively.

Central and local governments would be responsible for funding malaria control programs, said an official with the ministry's disease control department, who declined to be named. He said the amount of investment would be decided only after the plan was finalized.

The number of Chinese infected with malaria dropped from 24 million in the early 1970s to several hundred thousand in the late1990s. China was basically free of malaria, except southwestern Yunnan Province and southernmost Hainan Province, at that time, according to the ministry.

However, the disease has re-emerged in central and southern provinces like Henan, Anhui and Hubei as well as Yunnan and Hainan since 2000 due to weakened prevention work.

A total of 26,358 cases and 22 deaths were reported nationwide last year.

The ministry classified malaria areas into two types. In level one -- the most seriously affected -- regions, cases had been reported between 2006 and 2008, and the annual prevalence rate was more than one per 10,000 people.

In level two regions, cases were also reported, but the prevalence was below one in every 10,000 people.

The ministry wants all level one regions and 20 percent of level two regions to control the prevalence below one per 10,000 by 2015, and 80 percent of level two regions become free from malaria.

The ministry proposed stepping up malaria awareness and prevention efforts in affected areas, including spraying insecticide indoors and using mosquito nets impregnated with delta-methrin, an insecticide, as recommended by the World Health Organization for malaria control.

By 2015, the use of the specially treated bed nets should be introduced in 95 percent of level one regions, according to the plan, which was published on the ministry's website Wednesday for public comment.

(Xinhua News Agency April 10, 2009)