Delta Airlines Partners Red Cross To Control Malaria

Delta Airlines has partnered the Ghana Red Cross Society (GRCS) to fund and distribute over 4000 Long Lasting Insecticide Nets (LLIN) to some communities in Ghana.

The exercise, including a malaria education programme, would be undertaken over the next year to complement the National Malaria Control Programme, and forms part of the Ghana Red Cross Society’s ‘Hang up and Keep Up’ campaign.

It is also intended as a mop-up exercise to reach vulnerable people in the country who have not been covered by the programme.

Under the partnership, Delta would cover the costs for the procurement and distribution of the LLIN for distribution to four districts in the Greater Accra and Upper East Regions. The GRCS would recruit 80 volunteers who would be trained to carry out the distribution and education.

Each volunteer would be responsible for 20 households in the selected districts per the project period, totaling 1,600 households and a total of 8,000 beneficiaries.

Mr. Perry Cantarutti, Vice President of Delta, Europe, Middle East and Africa, who addressed journalists at the launch on Tuesday, said the educational activities would reach children and pregnant women, who are most vulnerable to malaria, to reduce under-five mortality and morbidity.

“Delta is committed to positively impacting the communities it operates services to and I am delighted that we are able to help reduce under-five mortality and morbidity through this scheme in Ghana” he stated, adding that, the scheme would provide support at the individual, household and community levels and reaffirmed Delta’s commitment to Ghana and its population.

Mr. Samuel Kofi Addo, Secretary General of the GRCS said his outfit, being at the forefront of the fight against malaria in Ghana, was excited at the partnership with Delta Airlines, as it demonstrated the two reputable organisations’ common objective to help the vulnerable in society, adding that, the project would reinforce the gains made in the past as far as malaria control was concerned.

He noted that the GRCS would also distribute the nets at its distribution centres, Mother’s Clubs as well as churches and mosques, explaining that the mothers’ Clubs, especially, would help ensure that the recipients of the nets actually use them to protect their families and expressed the hope that the partnership would go beyond the stipulated period.

The exercise is scheduled to officially commence on Wednesday, with staff of both Delta and the GRCS distributing the nets to households in Nima, a suburb of Accra.

Delta also has an existing partnership with the American Red Cross, providing a variety of opportunities for alleviating suffering by maintaining a standing offer of complementary cargo and passenger space.

The GRCS is a member of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and is the largest non-governmental volunteer based organisation in Ghana, with offices in all ten regions and active in 138 districts.