The deputy Program Manager of the National Malaria Control Program (NMCP), Ministry of Health and Sanitation, Dr. Alhaji Sayni Turay, has said that Malaria kills people in the country almost on a daily basis.
He made this comment during the second meeting of the Malaria Media Coalition which was held on Tuesday September 1, 2020, at the Catco International Hotel in Freetown.
The meeting was well attended by stakeholders and campaigners who are fighting Malaria. The Malaria Media Coalition was launched in Sierra Leone on February 6, 2020, and the purpose of the second meeting of the coalition was to reflect on the six month which has elapsed since the launching, to regroup and realign on the purpose of the Coalition and improve its operations.
“Here in this country, we are afraid of HIV/AIDS. Now, we have the COVID-19 that is why we all wear face masks to protect ourselves. But to be honest, from the statistics we have, Malaria is more dangerous than any other disease in this country,” Dr. Turay asserted.
“Malaria is almost killing people on a daily basis in Sierra Leone, especially the pregnant women and the under-fives,” he said.
According to Dr. Turay, this is all the more reason why the Ministry and the donor partners are taking the Malarial Control Program very seriously, and also why donor partners like Global Funds and the US government, through US President Malaria Initiative (PMI) program, are funding the malaria program.
He added that the US government is bringing in US$15million annually to control malaria, but noted: “This money is not going directly to the Ministry of Health and Sanitation or the Malaria Control Program, but rather to PMI’s various implementing partners who are helping in the control of malaria.”
He disclosed that globally, including Sierra Leone, the impact of the US sponsored Initiative (PMI) is reducing incidents of the disease gradually because they have been distributing bed nets and treating people afflicted with Malaria.
He thanked SpeakUpAfrica for deciding to bring the “Zero Malaria Start with Me” project in Sierra Leone, because it is not implemented in all African countries.
He expressed hope that the contributions of SpeakUpAfrica will increase the rate at which malaria incidences and infections decrease in the country, by focusing on the media. He acknowledges the power of the media as key institution which could aid the decrease of Malaria incidents in the country.
He said that the “Zero Malaria Start with Me: A continent-wide campaign for a malaria-free Africa” project was launched on 25th April 2019 by the Minister of Health, and since its launch a lot has been done to reduce Malaria in Sierra Leone.
He said that in February this year, the Malaria Media Coalition was launched which has created impact in the reduction of Malaria. He disclosed that they have just concluded a nationwide 4.6 million bed net distribution exercise.
Representing the Chief Medical Officer, the Public Relations Officer of the Ministry of Health and Sanitation, Mohamed Massaquoi said that health workers had done their best to see how they can communicate behavioral change in the fight against malaria, but it seems like more effort is needed to ensure that people get the proper information on Malaria in communities.
In a PowerPoint presentation, the Principal Public Health Officer of the NMCP, Wani Lahai, said that Sierra Leone is the first country in Africa to implement Intermittent Preventive Treatments in Infant (IPTI) when it rolled it out nationwide in August 2018, adding that in 2019, 249, 239 infants received the first dose of IPTI1 corresponding to a coverage of 79 % while IPTI3 coverage was 69.3 % in 2019.
She said that the Intermittent Preventive Treatments in Pregnancy (IPTp) coverage for all doses has increased over the years, and added that the percentage of women receiving at least one dose of IPTp1 has increased from 30 % in 2018 to 94 % in 2019. “The percentage receiving at least two dose of IPTp2 has increased from 12 % to 74 % and those receiving at least three doses of IPTp3 increased from 5% to 36 % over the same period,” she disclosed. “By district, IPTp coverage of three or more doses is highest in Falaba [72%] and lowest in Moyamba and Kono [13%].”
The presentation further shows that 68 % of households in Sierra Leone own at least one bed nets, and that ITN use by children under age 5 increased from 26 % in 2018 to 59 % in 2019, while ITN use by pregnant women increased from 27 % 64 % over the same period.
The meeting climaxed with the establishment of leadership of the coalition. The President of the Coalition and his/her regional representatives were elected.
By Stephen V. Lansana
07/09/2020 ISSUE NO: 7903