$7.00 safety nets may save lives and reduce illness

BALTIMORE, Md. (CRS) - Catholic Relief Services is issuing free, insecticide-treated bed nets to pregnant women and young children in coastal areas of the African nation of Gambia as part of a five-year malaria prevention and control program, funded by the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

These inexpensive bed nets offer critical protection from malaria-carrying mosquitoes, helping to significantly reduce infection and mortality rates in the areas CRS serves. "The net has made a big difference to me and my family. Since we started to use it, we have no more malaria," explains Fatou Dibba, a 30-year-old mother of four who lives in Old Jeshwan in the Kombos region of Gambia. "Not even flies or cockroaches can come inside once the net is down!" To Americans, the $7 average price for a mosquito net is less than the cost of a movie ticket. In Gambia, however, where many workers earn less than $2 a day, such nets are often out of reach for the average family. Fatou received her first treated bed net from the CRS project in August 2005. A year later, she was delighted to be nominated by her local women's advocacy group for training as a "Hearth Mother." These volunteers educate community members about malaria prevention and care, including the benefits offered by bed nets. "I encourage those who are entitled to a free bed net to go to our local health center to get one," Fatou says. "And I tell those who are not entitled to a free net to go and buy one to save themselves." 'A Big Difference' Malaria is the leading cause of death in Gambia. Though it is both preventable and treatable, malaria accounts for 78 percent of all outpatient visits and 58 percent of all inpatient admissions countrywide. CRS' distribution of free insecticide-treated nets lets families reduce the risk of contracting malaria and avoid associated costs of transportation and medical bills. Through distribution of bed nets and promotion of their use in the area, the CRS project aims to reduce by 30 percent malaria-related sicknesses and deaths among pregnant women and children under 5 years of age. Currently in the third year of the five-year project, CRS, based in Baltimore, Md., partners with government health agencies, local civil society organizations and community groups to attack malaria on a number of fronts. In addition to distributing treated nets, CRS works with its partners to improve malaria detection and case management, particularly for pregnant women, and to increase community awareness about malaria prevention and treatment. To date, project results are extremely positive. In the project area, 53 percent of the population now uses bed nets, up from 9 to 11 percent at the project's start. In addition, the number of deaths and hospitalizations of pregnant women and children has decreased dramatically, falling by more than 50 percent in one area hospital. Excited and grateful community members have even volunteered to help with net distributions. In 2007, this malaria prevention project is being launched nationally through increased financial support from the Global Fund and Catholic Relief Services. To contribute to this important work, visit the CRS Gift Catalog to make a donation.

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Reprinted by Catholic Online with permission of Catholic Relief Services (www.crs.org)