Njala University and the Ministry of Health and Sanitation through the National Malaria Control Program have on Friday 2nd December 2022, in the Senate Room of the University Secretariat; Njala Campus formally launched a memorandum of understanding to support the national malaria control programme in entomological surveillance activities intended to guide malaria prevention interventions.
According to the MOU, eight laboratory personnel will receive training in molecular entomological techniques for malaria vector control. Six of the trainees are university staff, while the other two are from the President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI)/USAID-funded Vectorlink project.
In his opening remarks, Professor Bashiru Mohamed Koroma, Vice-Chancellor and Principal of Njala University, praised the collaboration and described it as a landmark development, saying Sierra Leone must wake up and ensure that everything about human health must be addressed seriously. He committed the University’s entire support to uphold its obligations and expectations for the project.
Professor Koroma outlined how the University roadmap to develop the proposed School of Allied Health Sciences which will provide the right base for developing human capacity to support similar programmes. He also mentioned that the school will provide five programmes, including BSc in Anatomy, BSc in Biochemistry, BSc in Physiology, BSc in Epidemiology and Biostatistics, and BSc in Internal Medicine, with students specialising in Standard Operation Procedure in Medical Waste Management, Community Safe and Clean Water Management, and Pollution Systems in Rural and Disadvantaged Communities.
“We might not be a well-equipped University, but we can work in hard-to-reach communities,” the erudite VC&P averred.
Laurent Iyikirenga, Chief of Party, PMI/Vectorlink Sierra Leone, in his statement, guaranteed their continued support of the new collaboration between the two partners, stating that the training is the MOU’s materialization and that its goal is to equip technicians with skills and knowledge in molecular biology techniques used to obtain entomological data on mosquito samples.
The Chief of Party thanked the VectorLink team of trainers (Dr. Allison Handershot and Dr. Kevin Opondo) and the trainees for participating and assured the trainees that the training will increase their knowledge and help them develop the abilities needed to produce entomological data.
The training, in his opinion, is extremely pertinent in light of the commitment made by nations to eradicate malaria by 2030. He argued that this was especially important for Sierra Leone since the disease is the main source of morbidity and a hindrance to socio-economic growth.
Dr. Mathew J. Vandy, the Director of Hospital and Ambulance Services at the Ministry of Health and Sanitation, spoke on behalf of the Minister of Health and Sanitation. He mentioned that PMI and the Government of Sierra Leone collaborated to establish projects like VECTORLINK for malaria vector control, IMPACT MALARIA for malaria case management, and CHEMONICS for the procurement and supply of antimalarial commodities, MEASURE MALARIA for monitoring and evaluation, and BREAKTHROUGH ACTION for social behavior change/information, education and communication.
This, he went on, fulfills the promise made by Ambassador Maria E. Brewer on November 17, 2017, during the official launch of the President’s Malaria Initiative in Sierra Leone.
He commended PMI for its great efforts and achievements in vector control and entomology and gave the university his word that it will meet with the relevant stakeholders to provide an ambulance for the Njala University hospital.
According to Dr. Denis H. Marke, Program Manager, National Malaria Control Programme, Ministry of Health and Sanitation, Plasmodium falciparum among the parasitic variants that cause malaria, is the most prevalent and is responsible for over 90% of all cases in the nation.
He also said that everyone in Sierra Leone is susceptible to malaria and that the disease is responsible for 40.3% of outpatient morbidity for patients of all ages and 47% of outpatient for under-five children. Malaria also accounts for 37.6% of hospitalized cases with a case fatality rate (CFR) of 17.6%, Dr. Marke disclosed.
Dr. Marke revealed that the MoHS, along with its partners and funders, such as the Global Fund, PMI, (Vector Link, Impact Malaria, Chemonics, Measure Malaria, Breakthrough Action), Njala University, and several local NGOs, CBOs, and CSOs, had been able to reduce malaria prevalence by 18% from 40% in 2016 to 22% in 2021.
“In order to sustain the gains made, we need to build the human capacity of Sierra Leoneans so that when the Technical Assistance (TA) and other financial support come to an end, the campaign to eradicate malaria will go on unabated. So that’s why we’re here right now,” Dr. Marke added.
The climax of the launch was when trainees used molecular tools in one of the ecology labs at the School of Environmental Science, Njala Campus, to demonstrate, to the delegation, the techniques that had been taught to them, including using molecular tools to identify the different mosquito species that transmit malaria, how to dissect mosquitoes and screen them if they carry malaria parasites, check the source of blood ingested by mosquitoes (whether human, cattle, chicken, etc) and importantly screen for genetic mutations that make mosquitoes resistant to insecticides used in malaria control.
