The Ministry of Health has announced the presence of a new mosquito specie in the country.
According to a statement put out by the Ministry, the Ghana Health Service received confirmation of the presence of a new mosquito vector, “Anopheles stephensi” in the country in March 2023 from samples taken in Tuba and Dansoman, in the Greater Accra region, as part of the routine malaria surveillance system and vector control monitoring done across the country through designated sentinel sites.
The “Anopheles stephensi” is a unique vector known to breed in a myriad of sources such as ponds, swamps, marshes, artificial containers, and other man-made container spots. It can practically breed in almost all water sources, some of which are not the traditional breeding sites of the common Anopheles species, particularly in urban areas.
The vector also survives in extremely high temperatures during the dry season when malaria transmission usually declines. It is known to spread fast and adapt to different climatic conditions posing challenges to its control.
The Ghana Health Service is therefore calling on all partners to support in intensifying sensitization, particularly on environmental management, to reduce breeding sites for all forms of mosquitoes in our communities.
See Statement below;
❗️PRESS RELEASE ❗️
— Ministry of Health, Ghana (@mohgovgh) April 15, 2023
New Mosquito Species found in Ghana pic.twitter.com/mvlOKLQzhf