Ambassadors and High Commissioners join UK Parliamentarians and UK CAM to mark Africa Malaria Day 2007
27 April 2007
Africa Malaria Day 2007
The UK All Party Parliamentary Malaria Group (APPMG) and the UK Coalition Against Malaria (UK CAM) held a reception in the House of Commons on Africa Malaria Day 2007, on the theme of 'Partnerships for a Malaria-Free World'.
The event, mainly sponsored by the new European Alliance Against Malaria through the Malaria Consortium, was well attended by cross section of organisations and individuals.
Numerous Ambassadors and High Commissioners representing countries across Africa joined the reception and met with UK parliamentarians, advocates and academics to mark the last Africa Malaria Day.
The event's theme was highlighted through the contribution of four speakers representing parliamentarians, media, scientists and endemic countries.
The Chair of the APPMG, Stephen O'Brien MP commended the progress being made in science, by Governments, NGOs and their partners in the fight against malaria.
Fergus Walsh, of the BBC, spoke of the suffering that he witnessed whilst filming a documentary on malaria in Ghana, but he also emphasised the hope brought by new interventions and the importance of increased media attention for this previously neglected issue. He also presented a short film.
Professor Geoff Targett of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine introduced the Gates Malaria Partnership which has been a successful example of public-private partnership supporting research and capacity development and leading to innovative approaches to controlling malaria in endemic countries.
The final speaker, H.E. Ato Berhanu Kabede, the Ethiopian Ambassador representing Southern partners, spoke of recent successes of malaria control in Ethiopia and of the achievements of advocacy efforts in the country through the Coalition Against Malaria - Ethiopia (CAME).
