Malaria Fortnights

Malaria is an extremely serious endemic that affects much of the African continent. In Senegal, 100% of the population is at risk of the disease. Children under 5 years of age and pregnant women account for the most vulnerable groups to retract the malaria virus.

For some technical terms: Plasmodium falciparum is the major malaria parasite species, accounting for more than 90% of all infections. The main vector species are Anopheles gambiae sensu strictu, An. arabiensis, An. funestus, and An. melas. The species distribution depends on rainfall and the presence of permanent sources of water. A puddle or even a toilet can be a breeding ground for malaria-carrying mosquitoes.

Luckily, Senegal recognizes the problem and has taken steps to help prevent malaria. For example, during the high malaria transmission period, a community health worker performs weekly sweeps and visits every household in the village, actively looking for suspected cases and providing rapid diagnostic tests (RDT) and subsequent treatment or referral, as needed. This is just one of the thousands of steps that the Senegalese are taking to making their country malaria free.

Here is a photo of one of the many murals used to quickly show the benefits and consequences of sleeping under a mosquito net. These types of murals are painted all over towns throughout Senegal to try and help increase the awareness and seriousness of malaria.

Even though I am not a Health Volunteer, through Peace Corps's Malaria Fortnights I can participate and help spread the word about malaria, hopefully helping at least one family stay protected year 'round. Malaria Fortnights takes place over a span of two fortnights-- which is two sets of 14 days. Each volunteer is grouped by region and competes against the other regions to complete as many tasks as possible within the 14 allotted days. All of the tasks are malaria related, and are worth a certain number of points. For example, writing this post and spreading awareness of this issue back to you lovely people Stateside garners me 20 points. The tasks range from showing folks how to wash and repair their mosquito nets, to hosting talks with passerbys at the weekly Louma, or flea market. By working together and spreading the word year by year and day by day, Peace Corps Volunteers are helping to get Senegal one step closer to malaria eradication.