Aliko Dangote, Tim Ziemer, honoured for championing the fight against malaria

In celebration of World Malaria Day, Malaria No More (MNM) recently celebrated its 11th annual international event recognising two leaders which included the Founder and CEO of the Dangote Group and Nigeria’s Malaria Ambassador, Aliko Dangote and Tim Ziemer, a Rear Admiral, for their leadership in the fight against malaria.

Malaria No More is a non-profit organisation that envisions a world where no child dies of a mosquito bite. It works with global leaders to mobilize the political will, resources, and innovations to save lives and accomplish malaria eradication within a generation.

According to reports presented by MNM, about 7 million lives have been saved from malaria, more than 1 billion cases averted, and 17 additional countries have eliminated malaria since 2000. The success is thanks to increased political will, funding, innovation, and the collective efforts of a global malaria partnership.

Martin Edlund, CEO of MNM said, “Aliko Dangote and Tim Ziemer represent the combination of U.S. government support and endemic country leadership that have made malaria one of the great public health success stories of our time,”

“One is a military leader who has served the world’s most vulnerable populations across three administrations; the other is Africa’s most successful businessman and most prominent philanthropist and they have found a common cause in working to end malaria.”

Despite historic progress, malaria remains a daily threat, with half the world’s population still at risk. Globally, in 2015, there were 429,000 malaria deaths and 212 million malaria cases.

A child still dies from malaria every two minutes. In Sub-Saharan Africa, which, in 2015, contributed 90 percent of malaria cases and 92 percent of malaria deaths, the disease is the leading cause of missed days of school and worker absenteeism.

“We could not have achieved remarkable progress in the last 16 years without genuine endemic country leadership, or without innovative and entrepreneurial partners like Malaria No More.” Ziemer said.

“The malaria fight is a great example of U.S. leadership across parties and we must continue until the job is done and people around the world are safe from this preventable and treatable disease,” he concluded.

Last year, the Dangote Foundation and the Nigerian government jointly launched a private sector engagement strategy for malaria control.

Aliko said, “As a businessman, I recognize that malaria sucks the lifeblood out of the African economy; we cannot realize our potential as a nation unless we stop this disease. As a Nigerian, I am personally committed to ending the disease in my home country, which despite our progress still accounts for more than a quarter of global deaths from the disease,”

“I am grateful to the U.S. government for its continued leadership in the malaria fight. The generosity of the American people makes my country healthier, more productive and more stable.” said Dangote.