By Hajaratu Kalokoh
The Sierra Leone Government is set to distribute 4.6 million mosquito-treated bed nets across the country amidst efforts to fight against Malaria.
The distribution exercise will start in May, this year, an official says.
The household registration for the distribution of the nets will commence on 1 April, ending on the 12th, with distribution taking place from 22 – 28 May.
The disclosure was first made at a media training event on malaria reporting last week.
Principal Public Health Sister for the National Malaria Control Program (NMCP), Wani Kumba Lahai disclosed at the Speak Up Africa-funded event in Freetown recently that the bed nets were procured by the Malaria Initiative with support from Global Fund, costing over US$13,000.
She later explained to Politico that the distribution of the bed nets was part of plans to eradicate malaria in the country.
“We all know that mosquitoes transmit malaria and those bed nets are impregnated with an insecticide that kills the insect. So when you sleep inside a bed net throughout the year, you will not get malaria,” Lahai assured.
She added: “In our target from 2016 to 2020, we have a plan because we want to make sure that we have a malaria-free Sierra Leone. So we want to reduce the burden both on the disease and the death due to malaria.”
In 2017, bed nets were distributed nationwide to help protect the population already prone to the malaria disease.
Sierra Leone is among the African countries with the highest burden of malaria prevalence. The latest report from World Malaria reports by the WHO in November 2019 reveals that the country recorded 1.7 million cases of malaria.
Children and pregnant women are most prone to the disease.
Bed net is one of the preventive methods against the disease. But the nets have been misused by many with some using it for purposes like fishing. Lahai said they already had strategies to make sure the nets reached the right beneficiaries and used appropriately.
“We have strategies that we have put in place to ensure that these bed nets reach the right beneficiaries and are utilize appropriately and effectively because when you sleep under a bed net, it will prevent you from getting malaria,” she said.
Mrs Lebbie added: “We will visit every household to register and issue out a voucher, so that people will use that voucher to go and collect the bed net come May 22 – May 28 this year. And also during the household registration, we are going to administer albendazole tablets to children less than five years, so that they too can also benefit from the Mamie and pikin Welbodi week.”
According to the distribution plan, every two people will be given one bed net. A maximum of three bed nets will be given to each household.
Zalikatu Kargbo, a resident of Juba community, said she had been using bed nets for five years and this had helped prevent her from mosquito bites.
“I have been using the mosquito net for five years and it is effective. Although the bed net was not given to me by government, I bought it for my own protection. With the tent I hardly get malaria and I hope the distribution should reach us at Juba,” Kargbo said.
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