Advertisement

Financial constraints: Threat  to eradicating malaria
Financial constraints: Threat to eradicating malaria

Financial constraints: Threat to eradicating malaria

The Programmes Manager of the Greater Accra Malaria Advocacy Group, Mrs Gladys Tetteh-Yeboah, has called on the government and all stakeholders to support malaria advocacy programmes in Ghana in order to eradicate malaria from the Ghanaian society.

According to her, financial constraints were threats to maintaining malaria prevention and, therefore, the need for government support to continue malaria advocacy programmes.

Mrs Tetteh-Yeboah made the call at the Greater Accra Malaria Advocacy Group Close-out meeting that was held in Accra on Tuesday.

“Financial constraints now, and in the foreseeable future, serve as the greatest threat to maintaining malaria prevention. Funding trends by the public sector and donors are dwindling, leaving an annual funding gap of an estimated $2.6 billion dollars for malaria prevention from 2011 to 2020. Clearly, the need for advocacy to enhance domestic funding for malaria is a categorical imperative,” she stated.

The Project

The project was implemented by Hope for Future Generations (HFFG), Institute for Social Research and Development (ISRAD) and Youth Development, Research and Innovation Center (YOUDRIC) for a period of one year in all the ten regions of the country.

According to Mrs Tetteh-Yeboah, the objectives of the project was to change the attitudes and behaviours of healthcare service providers to test all suspected malaria cases using microscopes or Rapid Diagnostic Tests (RDTs) kits before treatment.

It was also to change the attitudes and behaviours of healthcare seekers to demand to be tested using microscopes or RDTs before being treated for malaria, and to also galvanise community support for the proper diagnosis of malaria using microscopes or RDTs.

She made it known that an estimated 1,518,211 healthcare seekers were reached through community durbars, organised groups, house-to-house, schools and community sensitisations on issues relating to malaria, including the need to demand to be tested for malaria before treatment and to always sleep under the Long Lasting Insecticide Treated Nets (LLIN)

She said 67 district / municipal malaria advocacy groups were formed in all the 10 regions reaching a total of 673 people made up of 419 males and 254 females were trained.

Additionally, she said, seven Municipal/ District Malaria Advocacy Groups (M/DMAG) were also formed and trained in the Ga East, Ga west, Ga south, AMA, La Nkwantanang, Shai Osudoku and La Dadekotopon all in the Greater Accra Region.

“Malaria remains a serious health problem in Ghana and Africa. As a result of this, Hope for Future Generations with funding from UKAID for the past years has been implementing the BCC malaria project in eight selected regions in the county to help eradicate malaria,” she added.

Challenges

Mrs Tetteh-Yeboah stated that the success chalked up in changing provider-seeker attitudes, however, suffered a significant setback due to periodic RDT shortages in health facilities occasioned by the burning down of the Central Medical Stores in 2015.

“Demand for testing before treatment by patients and willingness of health personnel to conform, were stalled by limited RDT availability,” she said.

She recommended that M/DMAG should be supported by all levels of leadership to make the group sustainable and given some financial support by the district for the group to stand firm.  

“In addition, we recommend that Community Malaria Ambassadors (CMA) should be supported occasionally to continue the community level sensitisation. The project M/DMAG members will continue their planned activities and we hope reports of such activities will be shared with the districts and the consortium,” she added.

Connect With Us : 0242202447 | 0551484843 | 0266361755 | 059 199 7513 |