Statement from the Episcopal Church and Episcopal Relief & Development for World Malaria Day on Apri

From Worldwide Faith News <wfn@igc.org>
Date Thu, 07 Apr 2011 15:50:07 -0700

Episcopal Relief & Development



The Episcopal Church



Office of Public Affairs


Joint Statement from the Episcopal Church and
Episcopal Relief & Development for World Malaria Day on April 25


The Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori,
Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church


Dr. Bonnie Anderson, President of the House of Deputies of the Episcopal Ch urch

Dr. Robert W. Radtke, President of Episcopal Relief & Development

[April 7, 2011] One of the most important

initiatives in which the Episcopal Church has
participated over the last five years is
NetsforLife® <http://www.netsforlifeafrica.org/>
, a program partnership for malaria prevention in
17 countries across sub-Saharan Africa.

As the world prepares to commemorate World

Malaria Day on April 25, we call on the Church to
pray for those suffering from this deadly disease
and take stock of those things done and those things left undone.

For the current triennium, NetsforLife® is the
centerpiece of our Church's prophetic response to
the Millennium Development Goals.

Indeed, dioceses, congregations and individuals
throughout the Church have taken up the call of
the NetsforLife® Inspiration Fund
<http://www.inspirationfund.org/>  and are
working to distribute long-lasting
insecticide-treated mosquito nets throughout Africa.

There are some stunning program accomplishments
about which we can all be very proud:

*       More than 6.3 million nets have been distributed
*       Over 48,000 malaria agents have been trained
*       Almost 35 million beneficiaries have been
reached, either directly or indirectly

To learn more about these accomplishments, please
join Rob Radtke, President of Episcopal Relief &
Development, Stephen Dzisi, NetsforLife®
Technical Director, and Meg DeRonghe,
NetsforLife® Acting Executive Director for a
conference call
<https://cc.readytalk.com/cc/schedule/display.do?udc=741dkqg5hxs4>
on Tuesday, April 12. You'll be able to learn and
ask questions about NetsforLife®'s
accomplishments, innovative methodology, and unique interfaith partnerships.

While we give thanks for these accomplishments,
this is not time to rest on our laurels.

According to the latest statistics from the World
Health Organization
<http://www.who.int/malaria/world_malaria_report_2010/worldmalariareport201 
0.pdf>
(WHO):


*       It is estimated that 42% of households in
Africa owned at least one ITN (Insecticide
Treated Net) in mid-2010, and that 35% of children slept under an ITN.
*       The percentage of children using ITNs is still
well below the WHO target of 80% partly because
up to the end of 2009, ITN ownership remained low
in some of the largest African countries.
*       Low rates of use reported in some surveys are
primarily due to a lack of sufficient nets to
cover all household members; household survey
results suggest that most (80%) of the available ITNs are used.


There is currently a huge effort to ensure that
malaria nets reach those who need them the most,
and recent measures indicate that progress is
being made. According to the WHO report, a total
of 254 million ITNs were delivered to countries
in sub-Saharan Africa between 2008 and 2010 -
enough to cover 66% of the 765 million people at
risk. Eleven countries showed a reduction of more
than 50% in either confirmed malaria cases or
admissions and deaths in recent years, and
overall malaria deaths have been reduced from 1 million annually to 781,000.


However, as the report points out:


*       While the rapid scale-up of ITN distribution in
Africa represents an enormous public health
achievement, it also represents a formidable
challenge for the future in ensuring that the
high levels of coverage are maintained.
*       The lifespan of a long-lasting ITN is currently estimated to be three 
yea rs.
*       Nets delivered in 2006 and 2007 are therefore
already due for replacement, and those delivered
between 2008 and 2010 soon will be.

In fact, this is exactly what we are seeing

amongst our NetsforLife® partners in Africa, and
it is the challenge we face until malaria is
eradicated - something that isn't going to happen anytime soon.

Furthermore, we know from our program monitoring
and evaluation that net distribution only gets
you part of the way to prevention. What matters
most is proper net usage, by the right people, every night.

So we have a three-fold challenge in malaria prevention:

*       Ensuring universal Insecticide Treated Net coverage
*       Sustained proper usage of those nets
*       Net replacement after three years of use

The Episcopal Church, through its award-winning
NetsforLife® program partnership, is rising to
this challenge every day. Through the
NetsforLife® Inspiration Fund, we are engaging
Episcopal congregations, clergy, students and
seminarians in raising awareness and funds for
malaria prevention and education.

In closing, we want to share a story from a

parish priest in one of our NetsforLife® partner dioceses:

"Before NetsforLife® came to this area, community
members used to wake me up in the middle of the
night at least four times every month to baptize
and anoint a sick child-only to bury him or her
the next day. Since the program started, such
midnight calls have ceased ... NetsforLife® is saving lives."


Join us in the fight against malaria.


For more information about the NetsforLife®
Inspiration Fund and how to get involved, visit
www.inspirationfund.org <http://www.inspirationfund.org/> .

The Episcopal Church welcomes all who worship
Jesus Christ in 109 dioceses and three regional
areas in 16 nations. The Episcopal Church is a
member province of the worldwide Anglican
Communion. www.episcopalchurch.org <http://www.episcopalchurch.org/

Episcopal Relief & Development is the

international relief and development agency of
the Episcopal Church and an independent 501(c)(3)
organization. The agency takes its mandate from
Jesus' words found in Matthew 25. Its programs
work towards achieving the Millennium Development
Goals. Together with the worldwide Church and
ecumenical partners, Episcopal Relief &
Development rebuilds after disasters and empowers
people by offering lasting solutions that fight
poverty, hunger and disease, including HIV/AIDS
and malaria. www.er-d.org <http://www.er-d.org/

NetsforLife® is a partnership of corporations,
foundations and faith-based organizations working
to eliminate malaria in Africa. The program
partnership, which has benefited more than 35
million people, includes ExxonMobil, Standard
Chartered Bank, the Coca-Cola Africa Foundation,
Starr International Foundation, the J.C. Flowers
Foundation and Episcopal Relief & Development.


# # #



Faith Rowold



Communications Assistant



Episcopal Relief & Development



212.716.6311



frowold@er-d.org



Neva Rae Fox



Public Affairs Officer



The Episcopal Church



publicaffairs@episcopalchurch.org



212.716.6080



Mobile: 917.478.5659