 | Author's Name: Susie Cole Date: Wed 23 Dec 2020 |
Rotary Fighting Malaria in Uganda
Rotary Prahran has partnered with Rotary Kampala Kawempe to provide 500 mosquito nets to poor families in water sodden slums in Uganda. In the wet season, deadly mosquitos kill mainly children, so local Rotarians & Rotaractors have identified families in need and have delivered nets, education about preventing malaria and other essentials. Our Club was grateful for the support of a District 9800 International Grant to partly fund this life saving project in Kampala.
Malaria is a disease that is transmitted from person to person by infected mosquitoes. The bite of an infected Anopheles mosquito transmits a parasite that enters the victim’s blood system and travels into the person’s liver where the parasite reproduces. There the parasite causes a high fever that involves shaking chills and pain. In the worst cases malaria leads to coma and death.
Malaria can be fatal. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 438,000 people died because of malaria in 2015; the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), Global Burden of Disease (GBD) puts this estimate at 620,000 in 2017 and around 257,000 between January and May 2020. Only Covid-19 has killed more people than malaria this year.
Most victims are children. 57% of malaria fatalities are children younger than 5 years old. It is one of the leading causes of child mortality. Every twelfth child that died in 2017, died because of malaria.
