WORLD MALARIA DAY 2023
PRINCE NED NWOKO FOUNDATION – AFRICA MALARIA ERADICATION PROJECT
PRESS RELEASE
By Adeniyi Ifetayo
World Malaria Day is commemorated every year on April 25. This day recognizes the global efforts of Roll Back Malaria partners across the world to put an end to malaria.
Malaria continues to be the most killer disease and according to the most recent world malaria report, the global tally of malaria reached 429,000 malaria deaths in a year. Subsaharan Africa indeed has the most burden of malaria cases globally.
Recall that in 2019, Prince Ned Nwoko foundation launched the Malaria Eradication Campaign for Africa with focus on sanitation, waste management, fumigation/spray as well as vaccine development. To get the attention of the world for this dreaded disease, the Chairman of the Foundation Prince Ned Nwoko made an audacious trip to the extremely cold Antarctica and became the first black African to visit the south pole in Antarctica.
Every year, the Prince Ned Nwoko Foundation joins the rest of the world to commemorate the World malaria day reminding all and sundry of the need to join hands together to end malaria in Africa. Since the beginning of the Malaria Eradication Campaign for Africa, the foundation has engaged in various programmes and interventions across Africa to drive the advocacy and awareness for the Malaria Eradication Project. Some of these programmes/interventions include;
High level meeting and presentation of the Malaria Project to the United Nations, WHO and UNESCO by the Chairman Senator Prince Ned Nwoko. Attaining official collaborative status between Prince Ned Nwoko Foundation and World Health Organisation.
International Advocacy meetings with African leaders such as Presidents of Nigeria, Burkinafaso, Ghana, São Tomé & Principae, Nigeria, and diplomatic missions to Nigeria. Strategic meetings with all relevant stakeholders in Nigeria which include; Ministers of Health, Environment, Education, Science & Tech, Labour & Employment, National Orientation Agency, Deputy Senate President, Senate committees on Health & Environment, House of Reps Committees on Environment and Health, Nigerian Governors Forum, to mention but a few.
Commemoration of World Malaria Day 2021 via a 5000 man walk in Abuja led by Senator Prince Ned Nwoko and other malaria partners and Celebrities.
Commemoration of World Malaria Day 2022 where Senator Prince Ned Nwoko hosted a media chat with newsmen in line with the theme ‘advance equity, build resilience, end malaria’ Assembling of Nigerian RTSS Malaria Vaccine Professors and researchers who conducted the lot-to-lot trials of the Candidate RTSS Malaria Vaccine and making a case for Nigeria. Collaboration with Malaria Vaccine Partner Sanaria Inc to develop a more efficacious next generation malaria vaccine.
Hosting the Global Action for Malaria Free Africa (GAMFA) in US as a virtual side event during the United Nations General Assembly in 2021. The foundation brought together Global Roll Back Malaria Partners to discuss the need to scale up the efficacious RTSS Vaccine in Africa. Three weeks later, WHO Approved the scale up of the vaccine for Africa. Sponsorship of Pan African advocacy and awareness during the 2022 African Cup of Nations in Cameroun through the Super Eagles of Nigeria Supporters Club.
Advocacy on frontline media in Africa: BBC, SABC, ChannelsTV, Arise, AIT, etc and engagement of A-List African celebrities and influencers such as Davido, Regina Daniels, Wizkid, Patoranking, Tiwa Savage, 2face Idibia, Peruzzi, Psquare to mention but a few Sponsorship of Mosquito Entomological Research in Idumuje Ugboko, Delta State featuring research teams from Molecular Entomology and vector control unit, Nigerian Institute of Medical Research and Department of Animal and Environmental Biology, Delta State University, Abraka. Amongst Other programmes.
As we commemorate 2023 World Malaria Day, Prince Ned Nwoko Foundation hereby calls on all roll back malaria partners and stakeholders to align with this year’s theme which is “Time to deliver zero malaria: invest, innovate, implement” to gravitate towards getting rid of mosquitoes breeding spaces by embarking on sanitation, waste management and fumigation/aerial spray of the entire country.
The Chairman of the foundation, Senator Prince Ned Nwoko hereby reassures Nigerians and Africans of his commitment towards ensuring that malaria becomes a thing of the past in Nigeria and Africa. As a senator elect, one of his first Bills at the upper chamber of the parliament shall be for the creation of a Federal government agency that will ensure sustainable implementation of the malaria eradication strategies in Nigeria.
