By Kehinde Ibrahim, Lagos
TO mark World Malaria Day 2022, AIICO Insurance partnered with HACEY Health Initiative, to tackle the menace in Vulnerable Communities through an awareness campaign in local communities spread across Lagos, Oyo and Rivers States in Nigeria.
A statement delivered by the Head, Strategic Marketing & Communications of AIICO, Segun Olalandu, revealed that about 500 women, their families and community leaders in the most endemic communities were directly engaged and were beneficiaries of the donation of long-lasting insecticidal nets.
According to Olalandu, the campaign which was executed leveraging the primary healthcare institutions in the communities, was in line its Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability.
With the theme for the year ‘Harness Innovation to Reduce the Malaria Disease Burden and Save Lives’, the Head of Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability at AIICO, Abimbola Shobanjo, affirmed that the objective of the campaign was to improve women’s knowledge, attitude and practice, particularly among pregnant women, nursing mothers and mothers in vulnerable communities.
According to her, AIICO, believe that a healthy country is key to achieving the sustainable development goal. “For this reason, we invest in the health of vulnerable people, especially women. Malaria can limit the ability of pregnant women and children to live to their full potential. We are implementing this project in line with our long-term strategy to support a healthy and productive country.”
In Lagos State the public health centers at Oke-Eletu – Ikorodu Local Government Area, Bola Tinubu – Alimosho Local Government Area and Agbowa – Epe Local Government Area were strategically targeted.
The programme, which was run concurrently, also took place in two Local Government Areas each in Oyo and Rivers States. Door-to-door sensitization campaigns were conducted within the neighbourhood of the health centers with a reach of about 4,000 people.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the life-threatening disease had about 241 million cases worldwide in 2020. It has continued to be a significant public health challenge in sub-Saharan African which accounts for about 93% of global cases and 94% of all malaria-related deaths.
