KOTA KINABALU, June 14 — Dengue cases nationwide rose 27 per cent to 33,367 as of June 13 (Epidemiological Week 23), compared with 27,640 cases recorded during the corresponding period last year.
Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad said the situation in Sabah was more concerning, with the state recording a sharp 50.4 per cent increase to 2,866 cases, up from 1,905 during the same period last year.
Several districts had been identified as the main contributors to the state's caseload, including Kota Kinabalu, Kota Marudu, Tawau, Sandakan, Penampang, and Putatan.
“We know that this surge falls within the expected cyclical trend of infections that occurs every four to five years, but we must remain vigilant in dealing with the situation,” he told the media in Manggatal today.
Earlier, Dr Dzulkefly officiated the national-level ASEAN Dengue Day, World Malaria Day, and Mega Gotong-Royong, in conjunction with the 2026 National Healthy Malaysia Agenda Roadshow, at the Manggatal Community Hall.
He added that, apart from the cyclical trend, the Health Ministry has also identified a shift in the circulating dengue virus sub-variants, with the DEN-3 sub-variant now becoming dominant, as a contributing factor to the rise in cases.
To address the challenge, it has introduced a new strategic approach based on Behavioural Insights (BI) through the Dengue-Free Community (Kombat) programme.
“We are introducing several new initiatives, particularly through the application of the BI approach, which draws on behavioural economics and examines human behaviour, including how people can be influenced or nudged towards positive change.
“The nudging strategy is aimed at encouraging behavioural change. People may be aware of what needs to be done, but that alone does not necessarily lead to action. Awareness and literacy are not enough.
"We need to create conditions that enable people to change, with support from both the federal and state governments,” he said.
Kombat focuses on three key strategies: environmental interventions, community empowerment, and a whole-of-society approach, including strengthening entomological surveillance.
