President Sirleaf Declares Tuesday, April 25, ‘World Malaria Day’; To Be Observed as a ‘Working Holiday’
President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has by Proclamation declared Tuesday, April 25, 2017 as “World Malaria Day” to be observed as a “Working Holiday”.
This year’s celebration, which is the observance of the 10th World Malaria Day, will be celebrated under the theme: “End Malaria for Good” with the national slogan: “Pregnant Women Go to the Clinic for Your Malaria Medicine”.
According to a Foreign Ministry release, President Sirleaf has requested the Ministry of Health and other Government Agencies, as well as international organizations and partners concerned to initiate and execute appropriate activities and programs befitting the occasion.
The Proclamation indicates that in Africa, malaria deaths have been reduced by one third within the last decade and overall child mortality rates have fallen by approximately 20 percent in countries where access to malaria control interventions have improved most significantly.
The Government of Liberia, realizing the significance of protecting the wellbeing of its citizens and foreign residents alike, has ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child to good health and nutrition and, as a Member State of the World Health Organization (WHO), joins other global health partners in supporting all health programs.
The Proclamation notes that continued investment in malaria control will propel malaria-endemic countries along the path in achieving the 2015 Millennium Development Goals, especially those relating to improving child survival and maternal health, eradicating extreme poverty and expanding access to education.
It notes that being cognizant to the harmful effect of malaria and the burden which imposes on the human race, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, a Resolution declaring April 25 of each year as Africa Malaria Day, amended as World Malaria Day, was adopted by the Summit of African Heads of State and Government held in Harare, Zimbabwe, in 1997, which called on Member States of the African Union (AU), to initiate and implement Plan of Actions that would curtail malaria and malaria-related mortality rates in Africa.
