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| Ifie Sekibo. |
Heritage
Bank Plc has joined the world to commemorate the 2020 World Malaria Day, amid
fears that paying much emphasis on the novel Coronavirus Pandemic could
reinforce progress on the mosquito-borne disease, especially in Africa.
The
theme of the World Malaria Day 2020, is entitled, “Zero Malaria Starts with
Me,” which is a grassroots campaign, first launched in Senegal in 2014.
In
canvassing for fight against the malaria scourge and calling on all
stakeholders to take proactive action in renewing their focus on eliminating
malaria by 2030 as targeted by World Health Organisation, the MD/CEO of the
bank, Ifie Sekibo said that zero malaria starts with every one of us working
together for a more prosperous and healthy future for all.
This
call is coming against the backdrop of the global rise in malaria cases with
the recent warning by WHO that the number of deaths caused by malaria in
Sub-Saharan Africa could double to 769,000 this year, as efforts to curb the
disease are disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
According
to WHO, in 2018, there were 213 million malaria cases and 360,000 related
deaths in the African region, accounting for over 90 per cent of global cases.
The WHO said if the focus on slowing the spread of the new virus leads to a
reduction by three quarters of access to anti-malaria medicines, deaths could
double to 769,000.
“Countries
across the region have a critical window of opportunity to minimise disruptions
in malaria prevention and treatment and save lives at this stage of the
COVID-19 outbreak,” the WHO said in a statement. It further alarmed that the
doubling of the number of deaths represents the worst case scenario, which also
assumes the suspension of all distribution of treated mosquito nets due to the
pandemic.
However,
Sekibo stated that malaria in Nigeria and Africa as a whole has been an
unceasing prevalence and dilemma for communities, posing a challenge that has
made eradication seem almost impossible.
In
his call for collaboration to eliminate the disease in various society, Sekibo
emphasized that to attain the global targets on malaria and the goals of
Nigeria’s national malaria tactical plan would only be feasible through greater
investment and expanded coverage of core tools to prevent, diagnose and treat
malaria.
Sekibo
stated that as part of the bank drive to support the fight against malaria,
Heritage Bank proposes to focus on how malaria makes people susceptible to the
present pandemic (COVID-19) in the world, whilst sensitizating the public on
its social media platforms on COVID-19 as it relates to malaria.
He
further hinted that the overly concerns of exposure to COVID-19, as malaria and
the virus have some symptoms in common which includes fever, headache and body
pain, hence measures normally taken for malaria interventions have been
suspended, which leaves vulnerable population (pregnant women and children) at a
greater risk of contracting it.
Sekibo
stressed that early detection of malaria and proper management will reduce the
mortality risk associated with COVID-19, whilst noting that community
sensitization and mobilization around the prevention, diagnosis and treatment
of malaria is of great importance.
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