Dear Barrie Residents,

Malaria is a disease of the blood that is caused by a one-cell parasite, plasmodium, transmitted by the bite of female Anopheles mosquitoes. Malaria can kill by infecting and destroying red blood cells (anaemia) and by clogging the capillaries that carry blood to the brain (cerebral malaria) or other vital organs. Ending preventable deaths due to malaria by 2015 has been identified as one of the UN Millennium Development Goals.

Worldwide, malaria causes around 350 to 500 million illnesses and more than one million deaths annually; 90% of those cases occur in sub-Saharan Africa. Malaria is particularly devastating in Africa, where it kills an African child every 30 seconds or 3000 children each day. In addition to the human toll malaria exacts, the economic and social impacts are also devastating: Sick children miss school, tourism suffers, and foreign investment is stifled. Annual economic loss in Africa due to malaria is estimated to be $12 billion, representing a crippling 1.3 percent annual loss in GDP growth in endemic countries.

Malaria is a preventable and treatable disease. The fight against malaria must be a comprehensive one, which includes insecticide-treated bed nets, taking steps to kill mosquitoes where they breed and when they enter houses to feed at night, diagnosis and access to anti-malarial drugs such as artemisinin-based combination therapies and providing a packet of interventions through strengthened antenatal care services and education. While we work to control malaria through available tools, we need to support the continued development of a vaccine.

You can help for purchasing a bed net for less than lunch at Tim Hortons. See the links below for purchasing a bed net online: www.buyanet.ca or www.spreadthenet.org