Imagine No Malaria

Imagine if we could stamp out malaria . . . if all children had the opportunity to grow to adulthood . . . if we could change millions of lives for generations to come.

Imagine No Malaria is an initiative of the people of The United Methodist Church to raise $75 million to eliminate malaria deaths in Africa by 2015. In partnership with our brothers and sisters in Africa, the gifts and resources shared through Imagine No Malaria will empower an entire continent to achieve a sustainable victory over the disease. We will accomplish this goal together with a comprehensive approach to fighting malaria that includes improving prevention, education, communication and treatment.

In Africa, a mosquito bite can be a death sentence.

Malaria is a leading killer of children in Africa. It’s the reason why one in five African children never reaches their fifth birthday. In fact, 90 percent of the one million people who die from malaria each year live in sub-Saharan Africa. But despite those grim statistics, malaria is preventable, treatable—and beatable.

Malaria infects quietly. But its wake is catastrophic.

One bite from an infected mosquito can transmit a tiny parasite called Plasmodium into a person’s bloodstream. The onset of symptoms may take days or weeks, but the fever, chills, vomiting, and severe pain of full-blown malaria are debilitating. Without a complete course of the proper treatment—quickly—malaria can lead to anemia, convulsions, organ failure and death.

Our goal: $75 million. Expansive participation.

Every dollar counts. Sharing a gift will make possible critical malaria fighting tools like rapid diagnostic tests, anti-malaria campaigns in schools, new research, and infrastructure improvements—vastly increasing delivery of life-saving care.

Malaria breeds poverty.

Malaria is both the cause and result of poverty. For many African families, earnings that might be spent on food are diverted to pay for treatment and travel to clinics. When lost productivity is factored in, malaria’s impact on vulnerable populations amounts to an estimated $12 billion annually.

Even where the road runs out, you’ll find us at work. Through a partnership with the United Nations Foundation’s Nothing But Nets program, the people of The United Methodist Church have helped to distribute nets in more than 20 countries so far. Our hospital and clinic network in Africa reaches the continent’s most remote areas. We have malaria projects in 30 countries. Imagine what more we can do.

Uniting faith and works.

As United Methodists, we are strong—11 million strong. We believe the world is our parish. Every life is important to us, and every one of us is important in making this vision real. In reaching out to people to relieve suffering, we find a revitalization of our own faith and our understanding of what it means to be Christ followers.

We can make malaria history.

Malaria is a devastating disease in Africa. It consumes 40 percent of public health funds, and is responsible for 60 percent of outpatient clinic visits. The goal is to eliminate deaths from malaria by 2015. By overcoming malaria’s burden, we will also make significant progress in the fight against other diseases of poverty like tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS.