Local Zambian Child Receives 135 millionth PermaNet® Bed Net
Vestergaard Frandsen, a world leader in the development of disease-control textiles, observed the first-ever World Malaria Day with a series of events in Livingstone, Zambia on April 24 and 25, 2008.
In collaboration with the Roll Back Malaria Partnership (RBM), Vestergaard Frandsen participated in a press conference in Livingstone, Zambia to profile the Zambezi Expedition, a two-month tour of countries in Africa designed to demonstrate that coordinated cross-border strategies and actions will prove successful in the fight against malaria.
The theme for World Malaria Day is “malaria: a disease without borders.” In recognition of this observation and in celebration of the company’s commitment to defeat malaria, VF staff will presented their 135 millionth PermaNet® brand bed net to a local child in the pediatric ward of the Livingstone Hospital. Additionally, all children at the hospital were given free PermaNet® bed nets on April 24th.
The donation of the 135 millionth PermaNet® demonstrates the success that Vestergaard Frandsen has made in scaling-up production to meet the growing needs of people at risk for contracting malaria in the developing world.
“We are proud to be official sponsors of the Zambezi Expedition, and its role in attracting worldwide attention to both the malaria crisis and the preventable nature of this disease,” said Mikkel Vestergaard Frandsen, CEO of Vestergaard Frandsen. “I firmly believe that the global burden of malaria calls for a global response, and cross-border strategies provide the best approach to beating malaria and insuring a brighter future for all of Africa’s children. By increasing production of our lifesaving PermaNet® product, Vestergaard Frandsen has bridged the global LLIN supply-gap, saving countless pregnant mothers and children from the ravages of malaria.”
The press conference was also meant to draw attention to the Zambezi Expedition, which passes through Livingstone during World Malaria Day. Sponsored by the SADC and other RBM partners, the Expedition was launched on 27 March 2008 and will navigate its way through Angola, Zambia, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. It will stop in each country to take on board local malaria control staff and journalists for a fact-finding tour of remote river communities exposed daily to life-threatening malaria-carrying mosquitoes. By highlighting both successes and challenges of fighting malaria in these six countries, the Expedition aims to demonstrate that only coordinated cross- order strategies and actions will prove successful in the fight against malaria.
The Expedition will distribute donated PermaNet® brand bed nets in Zambia, Zimbabwe and Mozambique.
Malaria kills more than a million people worldwide each year—90 percent of them in Africa, and 70 percent children under the age of five. While being a preventable and treatable disease, malaria causes loss of income and productivity on a scale large enough to slow a country’s economic growth. In such context, World Malaria Day will be a major opportunity for malaria-free countries to learn about the devastating consequences of the disease, for new donors to join a global partnership in the fight and for the scientific community to illustrate advances to both experts and the public.
Vestergaard Frandsen: Vestergaard Frandsen is an international company specializing in complex emergency response and disease control products. The company operates under a unique Humanitarian Entrepreneurship business model. This “profit for a purpose” approach has turned humanitarian responsibility into its core business. Vestergaard Frandsen was founded in Denmark in 1957. From its humble beginning weaving synthetic fabrics for use in work-wear, the company has evolved into a multinational leader focused on helping to achieve the UN’s Millennium Development Goals. For more information please visit: www.vestergaard-frandsen.com.
For more information about the Zambezi Expedition please visit: http://www.zambezi-expedition.org/index.html
For more information about the Roll Back Malaria Partnership please visit: http://www.rbm.who.int/
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