OP-ED:U.S. PRESIDENT’S MALARIA INITIATIVE

OPINION EDITORIAL
For publication on April 25, 2009 in local newspapers
Abuja, Nigeria
April 24, 2009

U.S. PRESIDENT’S MALARIA INITIATIVE, NIGERIA CELEBRATES PROGRESS; COMMEMORATES WORLD MALARIA DAY
By Ambassador Robin Renée Sanders
U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria

Today, we commemorate World Malaria Day with you, to celebrate your achievements, and rededicate the historic partnership between Nigeria and the United States to defeat this preventable and treatable killer.

For about half the world’s population, malaria remains one of the greatest threats to public health. It is a disease that causes poverty, disrupts the livelihood of families, and far too often, steals the future of Africa's children. In tropical Africa, the disease kills nearly 3,000 people each day with young children and pregnant women at greatest risk. Nigeria, with Africa’s largest population, has the world’s greatest burden of malaria illness and an estimated 300,000 children die here each year from this disease.

World Malaria Day is observed April 25 to call attention to the disease and to mobilize action to combat it. On World Malaria Day, Americans stand in solidarity with Nigeria and communities across the globe in the fight against malaria, On behalf of the American people, the United States Government (USG) has taken extraordinary steps to curb the spread of this preventable and curable disease both in Nigeria and throughout Africa. Under the President’s Malaria Initiative, $1.2 billion is being made available over five years to expand resources to fight malaria.

The strategy in Nigeria, as elsewhere in Africa, is straightforward. First, prevention: the distribution of insecticide-treated bed nets or the provision of indoor spraying to provide protection from malaria-carrying mosquitoes, and preventive malaria treatment to expectant mothers during pregnancy. Second, treatment: new and highly effective medicines are distributed and health workers are trained on the proper use of those medicines.

In Nigeria all of the above measures have been introduced but need to be greatly expanded to achieve national impact. The Nigerian government, working with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, the World Bank, the UK Department for International Development, World Health Organization, UNICEF and others, is poised for a dramatic expansion of its control program over the next two years, including a target of reaching 80% of all households in Nigeria with long lasting insecticidal bednets by the end of 2010. The U.S. Government through USAID has doubled its contribution to $16 million this year in order to play a larger role in this historic effort.

Similar programs in Rwanda, Zambia, and Tanzania are already showing signs of major reductions in the proportion of people infected with malaria. At the same time in Rwanda and Zambia, there has been a striking reduction in deaths among children under the age of five. On the isles of Zanzibar in Tanzania, malaria infection rates have dropped to less than 1% throughout the population of 1 million. Malaria prevention and treatment measures are associated with and can contribute to these reductions. Regional and district-level impact has also been reported from Mozambique and Uganda. With national expansion of key interventions, Nigeria should see similar reductions in infections and deaths.

Sustainability of malaria control programs is a critical goal of USG efforts. In Nigeria, the U.S. Government through USAID is helping to build capacity by training people to manage, deliver, and support the delivery of health services, which will be critical for sustained successes against malaria and other infectious diseases. We also partner with community groups and faith-based organizations. They bring tremendous value to malaria control efforts given their credibility within their communities, their ability to reach the grassroots level, and their capacity to mobilize significant numbers of volunteers.

Across Nigeria and all of Africa, children and their families are sleeping under bed nets; local groups are teaching mothers to take anti-malarial drugs when they are pregnant and seek proper treatment for their sick children. In schools and villages, community centers and places of worship, clinics and hospitals, optimism is growing that we can and will succeed. We share that optimism. The United States will continue to galvanize action and spur grassroots and private sector efforts to control this disease.

Ambassador Sanders' Remarks at Official Flag Off of Malaria-Free Kwara Program

U.S. Ambassador Robin Renee Sanders

Remarks as prepared for delivery

Official Flag Off

Malaria-Free Kwara Program, Ilorin

Monday, September 22, 2008

“Every Child Must Live”. This is the motto of the Kwara State Health Reform agenda and it reflects the initiative this state has taken under the leadership of the Honorable Governor Saraki to do what a government should do, invest in its people. I am honored to be part of such a momentous occasion.

The U.S. Mission in Nigeria is dedicated to partnering with federal, state and local governments, civil society organizations and the business community to strengthen the health sector in Nigeria. In this effort we are committed to combating malaria, one of Nigeria’s biggest killers of children under the age of five.

One of the main U.S. Government policy thrusts is in the area of health, particularly malaria. The U.S. Government is one of the biggest donor contributors to the health sector. My Mission, on behalf of the U.S. Government distributed and sold more than 3.5 million insecticide treated nets in Nigeria. We are also working closely with local and international partners to train health care workers on the proper use of intermittent, preventative treatment for pregnant women. One of our local partners, WomanKind Family, has been very effective in promoting the fight against malaria in Kwara State through social mobilization, malaria education, and training on the uses and benefits of insecticide treated nets. Another local partner, the Royal Covenant Heritage Foundation, is working closely with Faith-based groups and several local communities on health promotion programs. On a broader scale, we are supporting drug regulatory agencies to ensure that service providers use proper methods to treat malaria, as inappropriate treatments lead to anti-microbial resistance.

Governor Saraki’s forward-thinking approach to providing free malaria treatment to children and pregnant women is commendable. I also want to recognize the wonderful work of the First Lady on this and other health issues for women and children. Your Excellency, as you know, by investing in the women and children you are investing in the future of Kwara Sate, and in the future of Nigeria. So it is with great honor and pleasure that I am here to help flag-off this Malaria-Free program today. The U.S. Government and my Mission are partners with you in this very important fight against one of the main causes of infant mortality. Together we are partners in this fight and I know that you will reap considerable returns on this vital investment in your future. Thank you.