The U.S. Embassy informs the media that Dr. Padma Shetty, Deputy Director of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Kenya Office of Population and Health, will represent the U.S. Government at Kenya’s World Malaria Day event in Kisumu.

When:   Friday, April 25 9:00 am – 2:30 pm Speeches to begin at noon

Where:   Obambo Primary School, Kisumu County

Background:  The U.S. Government supports malaria control efforts in Kenya through the President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI). The U.S. Government’s malaria program continues to be a “game changer” in the global fight against malaria. Mortality rates among Kenyan children under the age of five, from any cause, have declined by 36% from 115 per 1,000 to 74 per 1,000 over the period 2003 to 2009.  The U.S. Government also supports Kenya to strengthen its own capacity to fight malaria.

Since 2008, the PMI has invested more than Ksh 14.7 billion to scale-up malaria prevention and treatment measures across Kenya.  In FY 2013, the President’s Malaria Initiative:

• Procured more than 7 million long-lasting insecticide-treated bed nets;
• Trained over 5,500 healthcare workers on intermittent preventive treatment in pregnant women;
• Procured over 6.5 million malaria rapid diagnostic tests and trained over 3,200 healthcare workers on the diagnosis of malaria; and,
• Procured 4.1 million treatments of artemether-lumafantrine medication for malaria.

PMI is led by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and implemented with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The goal of PMI is to reduce by 50% the number of deaths from malaria in 19 target countries by reaching 85% of the most vulnerable groups with proven and effective prevention and treatment measures.