Olivia Ngou, a member of GFAN Africa, who on 19th November received the #ReachAward as a Rising Champion says ‘I believe malaria elimination will not be possible unless the local communities and civil society are fully and meaningfully engaged, as they are the front liners and the ones present in areas where the health systems are unable to reach, working with them will help to save lives but also ensure universal coverage of interventions for communities at risk”.
Olivia is a skilled and passionate advocate for ending malaria in her home country of Cameroon and worldwide. Her advocacy efforts include engaging with a wide range of stakeholders, from students to Parliamentarians, to help them understand the importance of their role in ending malaria and galvanizing them to take action.
The Reach Award recognizes people who have demonstrated extraordinary leadership and commitment to disease elimination. The award is given by Reaching The Last Mile an organization that is committed to ending preventable diseases that affect the world’s poorest and most vulnerable communities and helping millions of children and adults live healthy, dignified lives.
According to the 2018 Malaria report by WHO, in 2017, there were an estimated 219 million malaria cases worldwide. The report further posits that there was an 18% global decrease in malaria incidence between 2010 and 2017 and an estimated 28% decrease in global malaria deaths between 2010 and 2017.
There is a need for urgent action to get the malaria response back on track with countries most affected by malaria playing a very significant role. Besides, malaria must remain high on the political agenda, so that additional resources are mobilized and communities empowered to take ownership of malaria prevention and care.
Olivia Ngou receives the #ReachAward from Bill Gates