By Doris Obinna
As part of activities marking this year’s World Malaria Day(WMD) with the universal theme “End Malaria for Good”, Reckitt Benckiser (RB) Nigeria, makers of Mortein insecticide brand, has joined forces with the Lagos, Ogun and Abia State Governments and the National Malaria Elimination Program (NMEP) Abuja, to scale up action for the elimination of malaria in Nigeria through community engagement, continued investment and sustained efforts.
The community engagement saw officials from the States Ministries of Health and Reckitt Benckiser carry out sanitation, free malaria testing and consultation in all the four States – Abuja, Abia, Ogun and Lagos States. They also went round communities to sensitise and educate residents on the immense benefits of maintaining clean environment as one of the most cost effective ways to reduce mosquitoes which are the major carriers of malaria parasite.
Speaking at the press briefing in Abuja to commemorate the 2017 WMD, General Manager, RB West Africa, Mr. Rahul Murgai, said the community engagement and collaborations are part of numerous consumer engagement activities by the company to stem the prevalence of malaria scourge in Nigeria and Africa as a whole. He said the partnership with the Statesand Federal Government, which has been on-going for years, also demonstrates the company’s commitment to the anti-malaria fight in the country towards a clean and heathy Nigeria.
He said, “At RB, our global vision is to have a world where people are healthier and live better. In achieving this, we will continue to make a difference by giving people innovative solutions for healthier lives and happier homes. We know that regular combined interventions of Long Lasting Insecticide Nets (LLINs), larviciding and insecticide use like Mortein is the solution to achieving a Malaria-free Nigeria. Therefore to protect our children and ourselves from getting sick, the first thing to do is to educate ourselves about prevention.”
Marketing Director, RB West Africa, Leferink Aliza explained that, through the grassroots community engagement, we educate communities on the importance of hygiene, and how the simple habit of maintaining clean surroundings and drainages can significantly help to reduce malaria.
According to Aliza, there are an estimated 100million malaria cases with over 300,000 deaths per year in Nigeria, mostly among children under the age of five. “Malaria is preventable and we have made it our fight to educate on how to protect the most vulnerable – pregnant women and children and their families against malaria. This has also leveraged on the Clean Healthy Naija program which RB is leading across various platforms especially for preventable diseases.
Reiterating Mortein’s commitment to eradicating malaria, Marketing Manager Mortein, RB West Africa, Bamigbaiye-Elatuyi Omotola stated that the brand has been at the forefront of the fight against malaria in Nigeria. “In the past few years, Mortein has partnered with the Federal Ministry of Health through the National Malaria Elimination Program (NMEP), Lagos State Ministry of Health (LSMOH) and various state ministries of health to foster education on malaria prevention via TV commercials, education at primary healthcare centers and the Mortein Own a Community Project which has been well executed across all LGA’s in Lagos State. We intend to take this a step further by having doctors in markets to do free malaria test and consultation in cities of high prevalence across the country. Additionally, One Act Against Malaria campaign has recently been deployed to bring the message closer by imploring everyone to do one preventive act towards the eradication of malaria within their immediate environment.
Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, in his address at the Abuja event, said this year’s campaign aims at drawing significant attention to the need to totally eradicate malaria in the country. He commended Mortein for its work and continuous support in the fight against malaria through its collaboration with the government. He therefore pledged the Federal government’s commitment to work with RB to ensure total eradication of malaria in the country by imploring everyone to do acts against malaria in their community.