WESTERN PROVINCE RUBAVU — In a bid to combat malaria, Imbuto Foundation has given out bed nets to many a people living with HIV across the country.
WESTERN PROVINCE
RUBAVU — In a bid to combat malaria, Imbuto Foundation has given out bed nets to many a people living with HIV across the country.
The latest was on March 2 where they donated 2,000 mosquito nets to residents of Nyundo, Busesamana and Gisenyi sectors. However, rumors have been circulating associating treated bed nets with certain side effects; making their use perhaps debatable.
According to Joseph Ndahizeye, in charge of fighting HIV/AIDS in Rubavu district, the district has worked hand in hand with Imbuto Foundation to track and donate bed nets to all families with people living with HIV/Aids, the same has happened in Kayonza, Bugesera, Rwamagana and other districts.
Bed nets being free, the recipients may not attach a lot of value to the items; and if one carried out a survey, you may find that people do not use the bed nets regularly as expected. This calls for the authorities’ intervention to find out the factors affecting their use.
Recently while burning illegal fishing nets impounded from illegal fishermen, on Lake Ruhondo, in Burera district, in Northern Rwanda, it was found that some of the unauthorized nets in the hands of illegal fisher men were actually mosquito nets. Such factors should act as a tip to examine the extent of their usage.
"Imbuto Foundation sent 2,000 mosquito nets to Rubavu meant for people living with HIV/Aids because they are susceptible to malaria more than other people due to weak immune systems. That is why they needed to be helped to prevent malaria," Ndahizeye said.
Ndahizeye cautioned the beneficiaries against selling the items.
"We have heard cases where people use nets as bedding material, we have also heard of people selling them to other people at very cheap prices. All this indicate that some of you haven’t known the significance of these nets. I urge you to use them because they will help you live a life free from malaria," he urged.
He said that Imbuto Foundation also delivered a message of preventing other opportunistic diseases like tuberculosis among HIV-infected individuals.
The beneficiaries thanked Imbuto Foundation for the assistance and promised to properly use the items to avoid malaria.
"We are so happy to receive the nets because in addition to protecting us from malaria they will also help us sleep comfortably free from mosquito bites," said one of the beneficiaries.
The beneficiary urged others to ignore rumors about the effects of treated bed nets to the users.
They called for more efforts in fighting poverty which is affecting their livelihoods. They said they were in a process of joining cooperatives to fight poverty and appealed to the National Aids Commission [CNLS] to visit them and offer them the necessary assistance to uplift their income levels.
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