MTN,Change-A-Life, battle malaria at Makoko

One common disease threatening the inhabitants of Makoko, a suburb of Lagos,  is malaria. This is as a result of  the humid and aquatic nature of the environment.

Though the state government and some concerned groups within and outside the state had made some efforts in the past to bring relief to the people of  Makoko through various projects. Deplorable living conditions and lack of proper sanitation facilities also facilitate the spread of malaria as well as other water-borne diseases within the Makoko community.

But the continued cases of malaria and epidemic diseases in the area have continued to generate attention   to the slum town of Lagos state.

This explains the recent action of   Change-A-Life, a not for profit organization  working with the Enterprise Solution Division of MTN Nigeria to bring health and hope to children in the Makoko Water Community in Lagos as part of MTN’s 21 days of  Y’ello Care.

This year, MTN Y’ello Care aims to eradicate malaria across communities in Nigeria. As such, staff of MTN Nigeria have teamed up with Change-A-Life to provide malaria preventive measures to the students and staff of Whanyinna Nursery & Primary School, Makoko.

The school  is situated right on the brackish Lagos lagoon, a hot breeding site for mosquitoes.
In order to combat the disease, the project provided anti-malaria drugs to symptomatic children within the school community; insecticide treated mosquito nets as well as anti-repellent mosquito creams were also  distributed among the students to help prevent mosquito bites. Volunteer doctors were equally  on standby to educate teachers and children on malaria preventive measures and the importance of  adequate sanitation.

“Malaria is still the most widespread disease, killing thousands of children each year in Nigeria,” says Mrs. Bridget Oyefeso-Odusami, Executive Director of Change-A-Life.

“We must all continue to work hard to combat and eventually eradicate malaria in our community.”
Change-A-Life’s mission is to work  as a bridge between people with potential, yet great need and the people, agencies and organizations that have the capacity to help and are willing to help these people. The scheme, which is solely not for profit was founded by Funmi  Iyanda in 2002,” she stated.

Over the years Change-A-Life has affected the lives of many children and people through its scholarship, healthcare, counseling and micro-finance intervention scheme. The scholarship scheme currently supports 98 children from across the country.