Anglican bishops tackle malaria

From Southern Africa-

Bishop Luke Lungile Pato of the Anglican Diocese of Namibia says leaders of the faith community can play an important role in supporting efforts to eliminate malaria because of their close connection with the grassroots.

“It is important for faith leaders and churches be involved in combating malaria. Churches are present in communities. They are trusted, respected and active everywhere. Churches extend the reach of existing national services and can use their experiential knowledge of the local context to identify and take action against the specific local drivers of malaria,” the Bishop said.

Pato is one of four southern African Anglican bishops who have declared war on malaria which the World Health Organisation (WHO) says still kills approximately 445 000 people globally annually.  More than 90 percent of these deaths occur in Africa and children form a significant percentage of people who die of malaria in Africa.

More here-

https://neweralive.na/posts/anglican-bishops-tackle-malaria

Central Africa: "Anglican Church Has the Power, Influence to Eradicate Malaria in Central Africa"

From All Africa-

An Anglican anti-malaria activist from Central Africa has said that the Anglican Church in the region has the power and influence to combat malaria in the region due to its consistent presence across national borders.

In an interview with ACNS, the Regional Co-ordinator for the Isdell: Flowers Cross Border Malaria Initiative, which works in partnership with the Anglican Church and other key, local stakeholders, Mrs Constance Njovu said, "the church should utilise its unique position by continuing to educate people on the dangers of malaria."

More here-

http://allafrica.com/stories/201409240990.html

NetsforLife Encourages Communities, Stakeholders to 'Invest in the Future. Defeat Malaria'

From Market Watch-

On April 25, World Malaria Day, Episcopal Relief & Development's NetsforLife malaria prevention program is joining with its partners to celebrate the gains made so far in stopping this deadly disease, and call for renewed support from local and international stakeholders to "Invest in the Future. Defeat Malaria."

Working through local Church and community partners, NetsforLife has had a major impact on malaria in sub-Saharan Africa. The program's methodology of hanging nets in homes has resulted in higher rates of net coverage and a greater reduction in malaria-related deaths than the standard distribution method. Although the cost of distributing nets directly to households is higher than positioning them at a fixed collection point, coverage and retention rates are much better when the NetsforLife methodology is implemented, leading to a decline in area mosquito populations and a reduction in malaria-related sickness and death.

"The strengths of our award-winning NetsforLife model are that we work through local communities and physically hang nets above people's sleeping areas," said Gifty Tetteh, Strategic Outreach Officer for NetsforLife. "Because we train and work through local volunteers, their neighbors trust them to bring nets into their homes and install them, and later follow-up visits help ensure that the nets are in place and maintained properly."

More here-

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/netsforlife-encourages-communities-stakeholders-to-invest-in-the-future-defeat-malaria-2013-04-25

NetsforLife® Inspiration Fund exceeds goal to fight malaria

From ENS-

The NetsforLife® Inspiration Fund has successfully exceeded its $5 million goal due to the incredible generosity of supporters across the Episcopal Church and beyond.  Over the 2010-12 triennium, thousands of individuals joined congregations, dioceses, schools and organizations in this church-wide, grassroots effort to unite Episcopalians in the fight against malaria.  Since 2006, Episcopal Relief & Development’s NetsforLife® program partnership has distributed over 11 million mosquito nets and reduced malaria-related deaths by 45% in participating sub-Saharan African communities.

“To have raised $5 million, from a grassroots level, by church communities working together is significant,” said Laura Ellen Muglia, co-chair of the national NetsforLife® Inspiration Fund Campaign Advisory Committee.  “Even more impactful is knowing that the mosquito nets distributed will mean children, mothers, fathers, grandparents, cousins, whole communities, will have a life without malaria, a new life of many possibilities, a life of hope.”

Working in partnership with churches and faith-based groups, NetsforLife® has been a leader in malaria prevention by distributing over 11 million nets, training 82,000 community malaria agents and reaching more than 30 million people in remote areas across the African continent. NetsforLife® combats malaria by educating community members about proper net use and maintenance, training community agents to deliver life-saving nets and providing ongoing monitoring and evaluation of malaria prevention practices.  Of the 17 countries where NetsforLife® is active, five – Angola, Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Zambia – have adopted aspects of the program’s methodology as part of their national malaria policy, and many others have solicited input for country-wide strategic planning.

More here-

http://episcopaldigitalnetwork.com/ens/2013/03/18/netsforlife-inspiration-fund-exceeds-goal-to-fight-malaria/

Faith-Based Organizations Partner to Fight Malaria

From the Sacramento Bee-

UMCOR to Join Episcopal Relief & Development's NetsforLife® Program Partnership

NEW YORK, May 23, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The relief and development agencies of two mainline Protestant denominations are forming a new strategic partnership to prevent and control malaria in sub-Saharan Africa.  By uniting in common mission, Episcopal Relief & Development's award-winning NetsforLife® program partnership and the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) will be able to reach 21 countries in sub-Saharan Africa where malaria is endemic.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110421/DC87843LOGO)

"The strength of our NetsforLife® program and UMCOR is that we both work with churches and other grassroots institutions to fill gaps in health service coverage – mostly in rural areas – and develop solutions that fit the context and challenges of each locality," said Rob Radtke, President of Episcopal Relief & Development.

The partnership began informally in 2010, when NetsforLife® and UMCOR began working together to amplify United Methodist and Anglican/Episcopal anti-malaria efforts in Africa. It has been particularly effective in areas of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Sierra Leone.

"The root of our partnership is a shared belief in the strength of African churches to take action, empower local communities to become whole and healthy, change behavior and target resources for greater reach and impact," Radtke continued.


Read more here:

http://www.sacbee.com/2012/05/23/4511781/faith-based-organizations-partner.html#storylink=cpy

In Zambia, Episcopal Relief & Development builds on success of malaria-prevention work

From ENS-

Malaria, HIV/AIDS and acute diarrhea continue to be among the main health challenges in Zambia, yet pneumonia is the second leading cause of mortality among children under five in the Central African country.
Episcopal Relief & Development -- in partnership with the Global Alliance on Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI), Zambia's ministry for health and the Zambian Anglican Council (ZAC) -- is planning to roll out a pneumonia vaccination program in 2012, building local capacity but offering periodic guidance in combating the respiratory condition, Stephen Dsizi, technical director for NetsforLife®, told ENS during a three-day training program in Lusaka, Zambia.

Episcopal Relief & Development has worked in partnership with ZAC -- the body that represents all five dioceses and health and training institutions for the Anglican Church in Zambia – in combating malaria through the NetsforLife® program, an Episcopal Relief & Development-sponsored partnership that has won awards and earned widespread respect for saving millions of lives in Africa. The pilot project was launched in Zambia in 2005, and a decrease in malaria cases of more than 50 percent has been reported in some areas. ZAC includes three representatives from each diocese -- the bishop, one priest and one lay person.

More here-

http://www.episcopalchurch.org/79425_129250_ENG_HTM.htm

Episcopalians take up malaria fight

From Minnesota-

Austin Ihiekwe knows firsthand just how deadly malaria can be. He grew up in Nigeria and watched as his baby brother died from the mosquito-borne disease even though his parents could afford medicine and were diligent in treating their children.

"In the rainy season, all kids had malaria, every month or every other month," said Ihiekwe, 67, of Cottage Grove. "But the availability of medicine is not universal. Some could afford it, some could not." And the medicines didn't always prevent the disease.

From Ash Wednesday through Easter Sunday, Ihiekwe and members of Christ Episcopal Church in Woodbury are raising money to buy 364 insecticide-treated mosquito nets to be sent to Africa. The 364 nets represent one for each member of the congregation. The effort is part of a larger mission project during Lent involving Episcopal churches statewide and their nearly 20,000 members, said Brian Prior, bishop of the Episcopal Church in Minnesota.

More here-

http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/faith/117910349.html

Mozambique: Further Efforts Urged in Anti-Malaria Struggle

The president of the Roll Back Malaria (RBM) movement in Mozambique, Anglican Bishop Dinis Sengulane, on Tuesday declared that, despite all the encouraging results achieved to date, civil society should still undertake further efforts in the fight against malaria.

Speaking at a press conference marking the start of a series of activities to celebrate World Malaria Day (25 April), Sengulane urged "let us make every day of our lives a day of struggle against malaria, so that it ceases to be the main cause of mortality among children and adults".

He lamented the negligent attitude shown by some Mozambicans. Sengulane claimed that a large number, although they have mosquito nets in their houses have stopped sleeping under them on the spurious grounds that the netting makes the room hotter, or disturbs their sleep.

He thought these were psychological problems rather than any real objections to the nets, whose primary purpose is to prevent the bearer of the malaria parasite, the anopheles mosquito from biting people, especially children and pregnant women, at night.

The Rest-

http://allafrica.com/stories/200904210852.html