A group photograph of journalists who attended the media sensitisation programme
As donor support towards the activities of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) dwindles, the Institute of Social Research and Development (ISRAD) has called on government and NGOs to intensify their search for alternative sources of funding to sustain the ongoing malaria eradication programmes.
Regional Coordinator of ISRAD, Abdul-Razak Issah, hinted that the total eradication of malaria from Ghana is very likely to suffer a setback if stakeholders in health delivery do not also find ways of preventing the disease.
Malaria continues to top cases recorded at the various out-patient departments on daily basis across the country, and still a leading cause of mortality in Ghana despite efforts to get it eradicated.
ISRAD, with sponsorship from UK-AID, has launched a project dubbed: ‘Advocacy for Resources for Malaria Stoppage (ARMS)’ as its contribution towards an aggressive fight to reduce malaria.
Under this project, some 100, 000 healthcare service providers will be sensitised to adhere to the national malaria diagnosis protocol and some one million healthcare seekers will also be sensitised to insist on being tested for malaria before treatment commences.
According to Abdul-Razak Issah, ISRAD through the ARMS project will form and operationalise district malaria advocacy groups in six districts in the Upper East Region to help improve the involvement of all stakeholders in mobilising support for malaria control programmes at the district level.
The district malaria advocacy groups will also work to improve community participation in health decision-making processes, particularly in malaria prevention and management, and also mobilise resources, including funds to ensure regular supply of required malaria commodities such as the long lasting insecticide net and malaria drugs.
“They will have to engage their assemblies to ensure that the 0.5 percent of the District Assembly Common Fund (DACF) meant for the malaria prevention is released. This year’s guideline for the use of the DACF stipulates that 0.5 percent of the fund should be utilised to support the district response initiative for the prevention of malaria,” Abdul-Razak Issah revealed.
A journalist and resource person at the media sensitisation on the ARMS project, Samuel Akapule, charged the media to probe the various assemblies on the release of the common funds to the Ghana Health Service and also monitor how the Ghana Health Service also utilises the moneys released by the assembly.
FROM Ebo Bruce-Quansah, Bolgatanga