Time To Jump Aboard The Anti-Malaria rain

“Time waits for no man,” the saying goes. In this case, it should be “Malaria Waits for no Person!” The time to get on board to support the fight against malaria is now. We can’t continue sitting idly on the fence waiting for someone else to do something about this dreadful disease.

Congratulations to the Greater Accra Regional Minister, the Honorable Sheik I. C. Quaye for taking the initiative by recently launching an anti-malaria special initiative for selective spraying and education in the Accra Metropolitan Area. This is just the beginning. It is our turn to jump aboard the train and support his efforts.

Malaria kills more people in Africa than AIDS. Anyone who has ever lived in Ghana knows the devastating effects of malaria. As time marches on, the disease mutates and becomes more resistant to local treatment. The loss of lives and productivity in Ghana cannot be over-stated. Malaria negatively impacts all aspects of Ghana’s development. From our young students to our elderly population, malaria does not discriminate. From the Nima to East Legon, malaria seeks innocent victims, rich and poor alike.

By regularly spraying impacted areas and educating residents on how to keep mosquitoes out, we can reduce the crippling effects of malaria. Malaria is not limited to Accra alone as anyone in Ghana can tell you. As soon as a successful pilot program for managing malaria is implemented in Accra, we must duplicate this effort in all the regions of Ghana. We must eventually adopt and implement an ambitious and effective national program to deal with this menace.

The time to combine our resources and fight this disease is now! We must pool our limited resources from the Ministry of Local Government, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Tourism, and others including the donor community to effectively fund the fight against malaria.

The government must actively support the Regional Minister’s effort by helping to secure funding through the following organizations among many others: HIPC Funds; WHO; Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; Donor Nations; Foreign Embassies & Missions; Major construction firms; Pharmaceutical Companies; Local Industries; and Ghanaian residents abroad.

In this election year, Ghanaian voters are going to be asking themselves “what have you done for me lately?” Government should pay close attention and get on board the anti-malaria train now because it is the right thing to do, and the time to do it is now.

How do we jump aboard the anti-malaria train? I encourage the Hon. I. C. Quaye to set up a trust fund for well-wishers and friends of Ghana to donate money and resources to. Sisters and brothers, the train has left the station, we must all get aboard and support this worthy cause for mother Ghana.

Views expressed by the author(s) do not necessarily reflect those of GhanaHomePage.