Lutheran World Relief has received a $1.49 million grant from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to extend the reach of malaria control in Mali.
“Lutheran World Relief is pleased to partner with USAID in the fight against malaria in Mali, the leading cause of mortality and morbidity in the country. With this grant, we can broaden our malaria control efforts in Mali, reaching even more people at risk,” says Alissa Karg, LWR’s Deputy Regional Director for Africa.
The three-year grant is made possible through the President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI), an interagency governmental initiative led by USAID in partnership with the Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Malaria Communities Program (MCP), a $30 million initiative created under the PMI, awards grants to support the efforts of communities and indigenous organizations to combat malaria in Africa. The program specifically aims to identify organizations that are uniquely positioned to work at the community level.
“The goals of the Malaria Communities Program fit well with the way LWR works. We work in partnership with local and community-based organizations, utilizing these groups’ knowledge, skills and assets to combat the conditions and effects of poverty,” says Karg.
With the grant from USAID, LWR will work to integrate malaria awareness, prevention and control activities into its efforts to improve agricultural incomes in Mali. Integrating malaria and agricultural work will help address the economic and information barriers that prevent rural communities from seeking timely malaria care.
LWR aims to reach 480,000 people in more than 400 communities, including more than 70,000 pregnant women and 90,000 children under the age of 5—two groups that are particularly vulnerable to malaria infection—by educating about malaria through the farmers’ own cooperatives and financial institutions and helping the cooperatives form community-managed health funds that provide access to malaria treatment.
Lutheran World Relief has been working in West Africa for more than 30 years, helping rural communities grow food, earn income, and improve living conditions.
“Our goal for working to fight malaria in Mali is two-fold. First, we want to spread the message about the importance of prevention, timely diagnosis and treatment. Secondly, we want to make sure that as many people as possible have access to timely malaria diagnosis and treatment. This grant and our partnership with USAID will help LWR to achieve both,” says Karg.
In addition to this grant from USAID, LWR has partnered with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod to raise malaria awareness and funds through the Lutheran Malaria Initiative, which is made possible through support from the United Nations Foundation.
