UNICEF NEWS

Out of control in Africa’

Over a million people die from malaria each year, the vast majority in Africa and most of them children under the age of five. In fact, the disease kills a child every 30 seconds, or about 3,000 children every day.
Yet malaria is preventable – a point stressed by Professor Jeffrey Sachs, Director of Columbia University’s Earth Institute, who was present at the premiere and participated in the pre-screening panel discussion. Mr. Sachs is also Director of the UN Millennium Project and Special Advisor to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan on the Millennium Development Goals.“Malaria remains basically out of control in Africa, even though we have the means to decisively bring it under control,” he said. “Insecticide-treated bed nets, effective medicines and a combination of therapies, indoor residual spraying in some places, good community health – these components mean that we can bring the number of deaths down by 80 percent, down by 90 percent.”

UNICEF has been helping countries around the world to take effective action against malaria, particularly by promoting the use of insecticide-treated mosquito nets.
“One of the most effective interventions is to make sure that all children and mothers sleep under impregnated mosquito nets,” UNICEF Deputy Executive Director Kul Gautam said at the screening. “These mosquito nets cost only five dollars apiece. If all the children of Africa slept under mosquito nets, a quarter of a million children would not die every year.”
Also during the event, Mr. N’Dour announced the launch of the Youssou N’Dour Fund in collaboration with the non-profit IntraHealth International. The fund will help promote malaria prevention and improved health for vulnerable African mothers and children.
‘Africa LIVE: The Roll Back Malaria Concert’ will air on Thursday, 6 April, on PBS in the United States. The film is being released in the run-up to Africa Malaria Day, 25 April, when the world community shows solidarity with African countries battling this scourge.

UNICEF NEWS

Goodwill Ambassadors help spread

the word about UNICEF and children

New York, 10 April 2006


Stars of the African music world gathered at United Nations headquarters in New York recently to put the spotlight on malaria.
They came for the US premiere screening of ‘AFRICA LIVE: The Roll Back Malaria Concert’, co-hosted by the UN Foundation and UNICEF.
The film documents a two-day concert held last year in Dakar, Senegal to support ‘Roll Back Malaria’, a global initiative made up of more than 90 partners whose goal is to halve deaths from malaria by 2010. Over a million people die from malaria each year, the vast majority in Africa and most of them children under the age of five.
Grammy-winning Senegalese music legend and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Youssou N’Dour conceived the film along with director and producer Mick Csáky. Among the many stars at the event were Mr. N’Dour and acclaimed West African singer and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Angélique Kidjo.
Also on hand were UNICEF Deputy Executive Director Kul Gautam and renowned development advocate Jeffrey Sachs, Director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University and a Special Advisor to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan.
The screening is one example of how celebrities use their fame through the Goodwill Ambassador programme to help UNICEF meet the needs of the world’s children.
UNICEF’s newest Goodwill Ambassador – world tennis champion Roger Federer – was appointed on 3 April.
Mr. Federer has long been a passionate advocate for vulnerable children. In 2003, he established the Roger Federer Foundation to fund projects benefiting disadvantaged children with a focus on his mother’s native country, South Africa. He first teamed up with UNICEF over a year ago when the Indian Ocean tsunami struck.
Goodwill Ambassadors like Mr. Federer, Mr. N’Dour and Ms. Kidjo play an important role in helping UNICEF get its message out. Their work is a reminder that every one of us has something to give to make the world better for every child.
Thank you for your continued support.