Cambodian scientist Yeang Chheang has spent six decades fighting malaria -- even in the Khmer Rouge labour camp where his wife and baby died -- and stands tantalisingly close to fulfilling his life's work.

The kingdom is stepping up a "last mile" push to wipe out the mosquito-borne disease, focusing on hard-to-reach communities in remote, forested or mountainous areas.

From 170,000 cases and 865 deaths from malaria in 1997, only 355 cases were recorded last year -- and not a single fatality has been reported since 2018.

The hope is for zero cases this year -- a remarkable turnaround for a country that was formerly an epicentre of multi-drug resistant strains. And the landmark would be unthinkable without the work of Yeang Chheang, who rebuilt the malaria control programme after the fall of the Khmer Rouge.

The communist regime murdered, starved or worked to death around two million people during its 1975-79 rule -- including Yeang Chheang's three brothers, sister, mother, wife and son.

Aged 17, he began training as Cambodia's first medical entomologist with a French expert in 1954.

He helped with the first malaria elimination pilot project, setting up a lab under a leaf-roofed office,........

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