Malaria Initiative Succeeding

Africa Malaria Day, April 25, is a reminder that Malaria is one the deadliest diseases in the world -- killing more than one million people per year, mostly poor women and young children in tropical countries. Because of this urgent need, in 2002, Freedom from Hunger, with help from the drug company GlaxoSmithKline, launched an anti-malaria pilot program in six West African countries.

This Malaria Initiative educates women in poor rural areas about malaria; brings them access to subsidized, insecticide treated bednets; and provides linkages to local health services for treatment. Education, provided in the form of role-play, story and song, is the key because it teaches women who have never been to school how to prevent malaria, when and how to treat it, and even how to organize community safeguards.

Overcoming Cost Barriers

Many women whose families are threatened by malaria cannot afford insecticide–treated mosquito nets. So Freedom from Hunger has convinced manufacturers and distributors to provide the nets at a substantially reduced cost (about $4 per net). Freedom from Hunger also arranged for local sources of appropriate and reliable anti-malarial drugs to be provided at reasonable prices to individuals when the disease strikes. Because Freedom from Hunger’s Malaria Initiative is layered onto a self-financing microcredit program, women gain sustainable access to credit to build home-based business, earning money to buy nets and pay for health services.

In a recent visit to program areas in Burkina Faso, it was seen that many of the women had already purchased the nets and the rest were setting aside money to buy them soon. One participant, Fatoumata Monomata, expressed the essence of the program, "I learned how to keep my children safe from malaria." By the end of the three-year pilot, the Malaria Initiative will be reaching 180,000 women in West Africa.

Achieving Sustainability

Wherever poverty, hunger, and poor health combine they often form a vicious cycle that lasts for generations. To break this chain of hopelessness permanently, Freedom from Hunger will make the anti-malaria activities a regular part of the Credit with Education program whenever it is implemented in malaria-endemic areas. The women themselves cover the local costs of the anti-malaria program through earnings generated by their loan repayments. The powerful combination of services provided by Credit with Education creates a ladder out of poverty, hunger, and ill health—with each step leading to a life of self-reliance, health, and hope.
by: Dottie Duncan

Dengue/dengue haemorrhagic fever

Dengue is the most common mosquito-borne viral disease of humans that in recent years has become a major international public health concern. Globally, 2.5 billion people live in areas where dengue viruses can be transmitted. The geographical spread of both the mosquito vectors and the viruses has led to the global resurgence of epidemic dengue fever and emergence of dengue hemorrhagic fever (dengue/DHF) in the past 25 years with the development of hyperendemicity in many urban centers of the tropics.




Transmitted by the main vector, the Aedes aegytpi mosquito, there are four distinct, but closely related, viruses that cause dengue. Recovery from infection by one provides lifelong immunity against that serotype but confers only partial and transient protection against subsequent infection by the other three. There is good evidence that sequential infection increases the risk of more serious disease resulting in DHF.

DHF was first recognized in the 1950s during the dengue epidemics in the Philippines and Thailand. By 1970 nine countries had experienced epidemic DHF and now, the number has increased more than fourfold and continues to rise. Today emerging DHF cases are causing increased dengue epidemics in the Americas, and in Asia, where all four dengue viruses are endemic, DHF has become a leading cause of hospitalization and death among children in several countries.

Currently vector control is the available method for the dengue and DHF prevention and control but research on dengue vaccines for public health use is in process. The global strategy for dengue /DHF prevention and control developed by WHO and the regional strategy formulation in the Americas, South-East Asia and the Western Pacific during the 1990s have facilitated identification of the main priorities: strengthening epidemiological surveillance through the implementation of DengueNet; accelerated training and the adoption of WHO standard clinical management guidelines for DHF; promoting behavioral change at individual, household and community levels to improve prevention and control; and accelerating research on vaccine development, host-pathogen interactions, and development of tools/interventions by including dengue in the disease portfolio of TDR (UNDP/World Bank/WHO Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases) and IVR (WHO Initiative for Vaccine Research).
FOR MORE INFORMATION
WHO Resources for prevention, control and outbreak response Dengue, Dengue Haemorrhagic fever [pdf 60kb]
WHO fact sheet
Disease Outbreak News: dengue fever
Disease Outbreak News: dengue haemorrhagic fever

Malaria Prevention - Five Ways To Avoid Catching It On Safari

Malaria is endemic to most of the areas in Africa where safari trips are still possible which means you will need to take malaria prevention precautions to protect yourself against catching

the disease when you travel there.

There are five things you can do to avoid catching malaria on a safari holiday.

1. Malaria Tablets

It's important to consult your GP when deciding on the brand of malaria tablets for your trip because they affect everyone differently and your medical history might play a role in the choice.

There are three types of tablets that are still considered to provide adequate malaria prevention (up to 98%) even though there is no drug that is 100% effective and some of them may have mild side effects - Malarone, Larium and Doxycycline.

Paludrine and Chloroquine are less than 60% effective because the disease has built up a resistance to these drugs over the years.

2. Safari Clothing

Mosquito's become much more active at dusk and during the night and early morning so you need to make sure that you cover up any exposed skin with the right clothing when you are outside.

It is often still very warm during the evenings but resist the temptation to stay in t-shirt and short trousers and rather cover up with long trousers, a long sleeve shirt and socks to protect your ankles against bites. They can't bite you through material.

Remember that malaria prevention is much better than cure.

3. Mosquito repellent

make sure that you apply mosquito repellent to any areas that your clothing doesn't cover particularly your hands and your neck.

Repellents that contain DEET are very good for keeping the mosquito's away but remember to re-apply periodically because the effect diminishes over time.

4. Mosquito Nets

Most safari companies do have mosquito nets installed in the accommodation they provide for their guests so make sure you check with them first if you are planning on buying one for your trip.

But not all accommodation in Africa has them and if you are going to be spending time before or after your safari it might be a good idea to have one handy.

Make sure that you purchase Permethrin treated nets as that stop the mosquitoes from biting through the material, protects against damaged or poorly erected netting and decreases the amount of insects in the room.

5. Malaria Free Safaris

The most effective way to avoid catching malaria is of course to stay away from the areas in which it occurs and there are some safari areas in South Africa which are malaria free and still provide an authentic safari experience with the big five animals available for viewing.

Madikwe, Shamwari, Pilansberg and Addo Elephant Park are examples of some fantastic game reserves that are completely malaria free making all the other malaria prevention measures unnecessary.
by: Bruce Whittaker

World Malaria Report 2008

visit...Global Malaria Programme