Nigeria Records High Death Rate On Malaria

A don of American University of Nigeria, Prof. Jennifer Tyndall of the American University of Nigeria (AUN) has said that Nigeria topped list of five countries with high rate of deaths on malaria.

Tyndall disclosed this in a paper on “Corporate Social Responsibility Holds the Key to Solving Africa’s Healthcare Crisis”, delivered at the ongoing African Conference on Infectious Diseases and Emergency Response in Owerri, Imo.

She said that Nigeria shared 49 of 100 per cent of deaths caused by malaria in the five countries, while DR Congo, Ethiopia, Tanzania and Kenya, shared the remaining percentage.

Tyndall, a Professor of Health Education, quoted World Health Organisation (WHO) as saying that there were 216 million cases of malaria with approximately 655,000 deaths in Africa in 2010.

According to her, malaria accounts for over 22 per cent of all childhood deaths in Africa, while 1.8 million deaths were due to HIV/AIDs.

“Of the estimated 1.8 million deaths due to AIDs in 2010, over 70 per cent occurred in Africa alone. Almost 90 per cent of the 16.6 million children orphaned by AIDs live in sub-Saharan Africa.

“These are all preventable diseases and conditions that low cost interventions can significantly reduce the mortality and morbidity levels in Africa. “

She said that Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) holds the key to solving the health crisis in sub-Saharan Africa.

“Due to the overwhelming burden on health system in most African countries, the most reliable solution would be the backing and support from private enterprises.

“Therefore, CSR holds the key to solving the health crisis in sub-Saharan Africa.”

Tyndall described CSR as a system whereby private enterprises channel their contributions to charitable and philanthropic programme for the benefit of social, medical and environmental causes.