According to Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), kala-azar is the second deadliest parasitic disease globally, trailing only malaria. Children aged five to 14 are most vulnerable, and the disease is often mistaken for malaria or typhoid fever, delaying proper treatment and sometimes proving fatal. Doctors at a local hospital initially told me I had malaria and typhoid fever,” he recounts. Kenya has a functional kala-azar control programme, which provides diagnosis, treatment, and outbreak surveillance. The story of kala-azar in Kenya is a cautionary tale of how neglected diseases thrive where poverty, climate change, and inadequate health systems intersect.

Source: Standard Digital March 08, 2026 23:57 UTC