Advocacy Bill Brieger | 10 Mar 2015 02:47 pm
Leading by Example: Ndeye Marieme Ba, Basketball Coach at SEED Academy supports the Zero Malaria! Count Me In campaign
Yacine Djibo, Founder & President of Speak Up Africa is helping focus International Women’s Day (March 8th) on efforts to protect women from malaria in Senegal. She is highlighting the commitments of 8 strong and beautiful women, in Senegal, that are dedicated to eliminating malaria in their country. These commitments are part of an inclusive mass communication campaign that aims to launch a national movement in favor of malaria elimination in Senegal: the “Zero Malaria! Count Me In” campaign
International Women’s Day, represents an opportunity to celebrate the achievements of women all around the world. This year’s theme is “Empowering Women – Empowering Humanity: Picture it” envisions a world where each woman and girl can exercise her choices, such as participating in politics, getting an education or fighting malaria. Below is the third feature on women fighting malaria.
Ndeye Marieme Ba is a basketball coach and a physical education teacher at Malick Sy, Junior High School in Thies. She is dedicated to enabling change in Senegal by focusing on the youth and using sports as a platform to educate them about malaria and other diseases that may threaten their healthy future.
Ndeye Marieme Ba, Basketball Coach at SEED Academy in Thies, Senegal
Increasingly, sport is used to help improve the lives of those who need it the most. Basketball is the third most popular sport after wrestling and football, and at SEED Academy, it is used as a tool to promote education and teach life skills. The SEED Academy campus, situated in Thies, was opened to boys in 2002, and combines sport and education to train the next generation of elite players in Senegal. Following heavy demand from girls, eager to join, a female course was set up.
The burden of malaria is the heaviest in Africa, where an estimated 90% of all malaria deaths occur. In 2013, children under 5 account for 78% of all deaths. Bringing awareness among the leaders of tomorrow is fundamental to put an end to malaria deaths in Africa.
Thank you Ndeye Marieme for leading by example and allowing Senegal’s future citizens to have a “healthy mind in a healthy body”.
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Headquartered in Dakar, Senegal, Speak Up Africa is a creative health communications and advocacy organization dedicated to catalyzing African leadership, enabling policy change, securing resources and inspiring individual action for the most pressing issue affecting Africa’s future: child health.