June 9, 2006 Washington, D.C., United States …. [ANN Staff]
Malaria, a mosquito-borne illness, reportedly kills one person in Africa every 30 seconds. Seventh-day Adventist leaders at the church's world headquarters and in Mozambique have joined other faith groups to eliminate the disease in Mozambique.
In Mozambique, a former Portuguese colony that has been wracked by civil war, malaria is a greater killer than HIV and AIDS, local officials say. As a consequence, the Center for Global Justice and Reconciliation, part of the Washington National Cathedral, decided to get involved with the anti-malaria battle, along with other challenges identified in the United Nation's Millennium Development Goals.
The Adventist Church's world headquarters participated in a consultation on poverty and the U.N.'s Millennium Development Goals in September 2005. During that time, the malaria question came up, and Rajmund Dabrowski, communication director for the world church, expressed a desire to help.
This week, John Banks, associate communication director for the world church, has been in Mozambique working with leaders of various faith communities to help initiate a national communication effort as part of the anti-malaria campaign.
“If we pool our resources, the faith community can reach all over the country. We are in every village all over the country. We go where government cannot go,” said Bishop Dom Dinis Sengulane, Anglican Bishop of Lebombo, Mozambique. He spoke in Washington, D.C., June 8 as part of a panel discussion on “Fighting Malaria in Africa: Challenges and Partnerships.” He is working closely with the Center for Global Justice and Reconciliation, which supports the Inter Religious Campaign against Malaria in Mozambique (IRCMM). The IRCMM is co-chaired by Bishop Sengulane along with the Christian Council of Mozambique and Roman Catholic, Muslim, Seventh-day Adventist and Assembly of God leaders.
Twenty-six Christian, Muslim and other faith leaders met in Maputo, Mozambique on April 19 to formalize their commitment to work together against malaria and to establish the Inter Religious Campaign against Malaria in Mozambique.
“Civil society has the responsibility to participate in the communication efforts to change attitudes towards malaria,” Dr. Mouzinho Saide, Mozambique's health director said at that meeting. “Specifically we expect religious leaders to use their knowledge and spiritual power in helping transform the efforts of the struggle against malaria in a way that is culturally appropriate for our people.”
Dr. Allan Handysides, health ministries director for the worldwide Adventist Church, is part of the effort to help eradicate malaria in Mozambique: “Speaking from a public health perspective, and as a member of the working group to support IRCMM, I am tremendously hopeful that by combining the extensive congregational resources of the various faith communities we can make a significant and lasting impact on malaria in Mozambique,” he remarked.
Among the Center's current priorities is forging interreligious collaborations to address the scourge of malaria. Although preventable, malaria is the leading cause of death throughout the world. Closer collaboration between religious centers, health organizations, and government programs will increase the effectiveness and reach of anti-malaria programs. The Center has established an Interreligious Working Group on Malaria and was considered by many to be instrumental in assisting Mozambique in gaining anti-malaria funding.
There is no single step that will stop malaria's spread: “You can't put nets around people [all the time],” noted Adventist pastor Pardon Mwansa, a native of neighboring Zambia and a general vice president of the world church. Mosquitoes, he notes, can attack during the day as easily as at night.
Defeating malaria will require a wide variety of efforts and strategies. Though spread by mosquitoes, preventing the disease involves more than just the use of netting to protect sleeping individuals from insect bites. One goal of the working group is to educate people to change behaviors that can inadvertently promote the disease.
The Rev. Canon John Peterson, director of the Center for Global Justice and Reconciliation, recently visited the Adventist Church's world headquarters along with Jean Duff, the center's managing director, and was lavish in his praise for the church. He noted “what you have done surpasses all [the efforts of our other] partners.” He called the Adventist church “one of our great partners” in responding to global issues, a goal of the center.
Meanwhile, the Mozambican anti-malaria effort received a major boost from the United States government. At a June 8 Washington, D.C., breakfast, First Lady Mrs. Laura Bush, said Mozambique would be one of four countries added to the “President's Malaria Initiative,” a US$1.2 billion five-year initiative to control malaria in Africa.
“Today, malaria is the number one killer of children in Africa, and more than a million people around the world die of its effects each year,” Mrs. Bush said. “Malaria is largely preventable and the President's Malaria Initiative–along with the efforts of other governments and private partners– is working to eradicate malaria as a devastating killer of women and children.”
Copyright (c) 2006 by Adventist News Network.
Copyright (c) 2006 by Adventist News Network.
