Some sectors in Bugesera District such as Gihinga CS recorded up to 8,085 malaria cases last year, according to the district health coordinator, Francis Karambizi. The district accommodates more than 300,000 residents in total, and recording that number in just one sector is high by any standards, Karambizi said. He attributes this to an extensive area covered by mosquito-infested marshlands in the district. Other districts reported with high malaria cases are Kirehe and Nyagatare. Malaria is the number one killer disease in Africa, according to the World Health Organisation. Karambizi cites high temperatures in Bugesera as another major factor causing high rates of mosquito breeding. “The number of malaria patients has been reducing each year since 2008 until last year, when they increased again in all the sectors of Bugesera. But one thing we noted was that places with lesser marshlands/swamps have lesser cases of malaria,” Karambizi said. He says malaria cases usually increase during August than any other month of the year. Supply of free mosquito nets and training are the key strategies that the Government is using to prevent malaria. This it does with support from partners such as Society for Family Health (SFH) Rwanda. As of Wednesday last week, Bugesera Health Centre said it has given out about 82,000 insecticide treated mosquito nets since this year began. “We also have campaigns in different sectors which raise awareness of the ways to prevent and fight malaria. We also support clubs that fight against malaria,” Karambizi said. “Although we do all this, there are still many malaria cases in our area, so we also train health workers that live in proximity with people so they treat minor cases before they (patients) come to the health centres or before the situation goes out of hand.” Another strategy applied by the district health officials is the spraying of mosquito disinfectant in people’s homes which is done twice a year. Incidentally, some residents have wrong perceptions and ill feelings about treated mosquito nets provided, a challenge that SFH Rwanda is trying to tackle. “Many people say that nets cause skin irritation. Others complain about a lot of heat that causes sleep discomfort at night,” he says. “The trainings and sensitization will slowly change these myths and are indeed getting out of people’s minds.”
