USAID Recognizes Schools For Their Malaria Prevention Role In Communities


The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) presented two sets of football jerseys to two schools in Sege Circuit in recognition of their outstanding efforts as part of a national incentive program to encourage schools to share vital, accurate information about malaria prevention in their communities. The two award-winning schools are the Goi and Akplabanya District Assembly primary schools in the Ada West district of the Greater Accra Region. This presentation is the first of similar awards to primary schools across the country. In total, 2,882 jerseys will be donated to schools in the 1,441 circuits across Ghana.

USAID through the US President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI) trained teachers and head teachers in all 10 regions of Ghana to creatively use various learning tools and teaching aids, such as drama scripts to educate pupils on malaria. These teachers were then charged to share this knowledge with their students and train them to share malaria prevention messages within their communities through drama, dance, visual arts, and songs.

PMI is an inter-agency initiative led by USAID with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as a major partner. Under the PMI, USAID supports the ownership and use of long-lasting insecticide treated nets (LLINs), especially by pregnant women and children under age five; indoor residual spraying in selected areas; Intermittent Preventive Treatment to protect pregnant women; and prompt diagnosis and treatment of malaria patients with effective antimalarials.

USAID has been working in partnership with the National Malaria Control Program (NMCP) and the Ghana Education Service (GES) to increase the distribution and use of long lasting insecticide nets in communities. There have been two rounds of nationwide LLIN distributions to class 2 and class 6 students since 2012. To date, a total of 2,755,000 LLINs have been distributed through primary schools.

Ghana has made considerable progress in LLIN distribution and ownership over the years; thanks to mass distribution campaigns from 2010 to 2012, followed by continuous distribution via antenatal clinics, child welfare clinics and primary schools.

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