At the Malaria Policy Center we spend most of our time on conference calls and in board rooms talking about how policy makers can help defeat malaria a world away and this week in Tanzania we have been doing a lot of the same. We are meeting with government leaders and other NGOs to determine how to best wage war on this terrible disease. 

But for me, the policy arguments and strategies can only be one part of our efforts and thanks to Save the Children I got to see and hear from another important part of our battle with malaria – the kids that are coming down with it everyday. 

I was picked up at my comfortable hotel and driven out of the city center to a district called Temeke. Just a month or so ago this area was shaken by explosions at an old military munitions dump and it was clear that these people had been physically and emotionally hurt by the tragedy. Save the Children was one of the first organizations on the ground after the explosions and they have built an amazing relationship with the local youth council with which they thought I could have a great dialogue about malaria.

As we arrived we were politely greeted by a slew of children that to me looked much younger than they were. Our hostess, the young council chairwoman, was kind enough to bring us into a small room in the community building (which happened to have a trash heap in front of it.) 

We all shook hands and sat in a circle on wooden benches to begin our discussion. Since the children don’t speak English and I don’t speak Kiswahili we used a Save the Children staff member as a capable translator. 

Most meetings in Africa are very formal and this one began much the same way. After some name introductions the vice chair of the council, a sixteen-year-old boy that looked nothing past thirteen, stood up and began to read from a prepared set of notes. It was a complete introduction to the youth councils and how they worked to reach their goals. They spend a lot of time educating other kids about their rights and how important it is to go to school, live a clean lifestyle and speak out for others. I was truly impressed by the presentation and once he was finished the vice chair gave me the printed notes as a gift.  

The formality quickly changed and we began an honest conversation on how malaria leaves lasting effects on their lives and how an organization like Malaria No More could help fight malaria.  

These kids amazed me. They were so responsible and to me, more accurately articulated problems with net and drug distribution. At one point the eleven-year-old guy sitting next to me claimed that the youth council should be the one distributing malaria drugs so they get to the people that need them the most.  

I learned a lot from these kids. They are resilient, strong people that come from families that can not afford a $3-5 malaria treatment (local pharmacies are raising the prices while the drugs should cost around 30 cents and the government is working to fix the problem).

As we work to build malaria campaigns in Tanzania I will remember what these children taught me and how confident there were in the face of such poverty and disease. They are the ones whom will realize an end to malaria deaths and I want to do what I can to help them. 

And those printed notes they gave me as a gift, they will remain a prized possession and a stern reminder that we have a lot of work to do.

Tags: children, Malaria, save the children, tanzania

Tags: children, Malaria, save the children, tanzania
Categories:Global Health Community