Malaria kills 3,000 children daily

from My Joy Online

Malaria kills 3,000 children every day, and more than one million die each year from the disease.

Available statistics show that the most affected victims of malaria are women and children.

Out of the almost half a billion people affected worldwide, 75 per cent are said to be women and children.

It kills 3,000 children every day, and more than one million each year. The majority of these deaths occur among children under five years of age, and pregnant women in sub-Saharan Africa.

The clinical disease burden is especially high among these two groups, as a result of immature and weakened immunity, respectively.

This is what prompted Non Governmental Organizations (NGO), including the United States-based Free Africa Foundation (FAF), to wage an unending war on the disease.

In the latest of its series of campaigns, the FAF has presented 2,000 treated bed nets and mosquito repellents to three villages in the Eastern Region.

The villages, which were also fumigated, include Papanso Krokese, Ayirebi and Okumaning.

Like other NGO's, the foundation has focused most of its prevention and control programmes on these biologically vulnerable groups, particularly those living in especially poor and hard to reach communities.

These communities often have limited access to primary health care and to simple and effective preventive tools, such as insecticide treated mosquito nets.

In addition, they are less likely to have access to basic information regarding the disease and how to avoid it.

Presenting the items to the chiefs and people of the three villages, the President of the Free Africa Foundation, Professor George Ayittey said his organization was concerned about the health of peasant Africans, hence the initiating of the programme to eradicate malaria from the continent, especially, Ghana, Nigeria, Benin, Kenya and Tanzania.

For the past three years, the foundation has supplied treated mosquito nets and mosquitoes repellents to 45 villages, costing GH¢ 130,000.00.
This amount was jointly financed by the foundation and its partners, including the Hedge Funds, Michael Sacks, the Anderson family and Ann Margurite.

The rest include Alen Model, Lance Laifer, Susan Robert Bishop and Dick and Maureen Wright.

Prof. Ayittey, thus advised Ghanaians to dismiss the perception that NGO's wallow in wealth and therefore should be milked: "This is untrue; there are many poor, needy and deprived people in the United States of America; some cannot get even three square meals a day. But we have to fight hunger, poverty and disease," he said.

He thus urged Ghanaians to erase the erroneous perception that NGOs are rich. In furtherance of his speech, the noted Economist said "God did not create anybody to be poor; there's money in the land and we must wake up from our slumber and work harder to get it."

He took the opportunity to congratulate the flag bearers of the various political parties, on their election and advised them to work in the interest of the nation.

"It is Ghana that we must strive hard to rebuild, and not parties and personalities. Remember that insults, acrimony, malice and vindictiveness will not move the nation forward. It is unity and love;" he emphasized.

On his part, the Local Coordinator of the Free Africa Foundation, Mr. G. B. K Owusu urged recipients of the items to keep their surroundings clean and make good use of the nets.

The chiefs of Papanso Krokese, Ayirebi and Okumaning also thanked the donors for their kind and humane gesture.