THE Biotechnology and Nuclear Agriculture Research Institute (BNARI) of the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission (GAEC) today begins a research on mosquito breeding sites at Kwabenya in the Ga East Municipality.
The two weeks exercise which is aimedat helping to develop malaria control measures in the country would also assess bed net ownership and usage among the residents of Kwabenya.
The Director of BNARI, Dr Michael Osae, made this known yesterday when he interacted with journalists to announce activities for the institute’s month-long malaria awareness campaign in commemoration of the World Malaria Day.
According to DrOsae, the campaign was to empower communities toward malaria prevention and control, and help solve the problem of malaria through research-driven solutions.
“Research has shown that urban areas are highly effective breeding grounds for mosquitos, increasing the likelihood of disease transmission. Indeed, disease-carrying mosquitos in dense human populations pose a serious threat to public health,” he said.
DrOsaesaid this year’s campaign was targeted at the people of Kwabenya and its environs because the community had hosted the Commission for decades, and that the annual exercise was a reciprocal gesture in appreciation of the support of the people to the Commission.
According to the campaign, corporate social responsibility and research activity of GAEC had been ran for years, with impactful discoveries made every year.
Last year, he said, the research was done at Atatam in the AdansiAsokwa District in the Ashanti Region, where it was found out that there were two main types of malaria-causing mosquitoes in the Atatam community — the Anopheles gambiae and the Anopheles funestus.
“Both species had high resistance to all classes of insecticides organophosphates, organochlorines, pyrethroids and carbamates — recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO) for public health use,” he said.
Shedding light on some key activities of the campaign, DrOsae said that apart from the research exercise, there would be an awareness durbar to educate some community schools in Kwabenya and its environs on malaria prevention and control.
He also indicated that there would be a free health screening exercise for school pupils and teachers in Kwabenya and its environs.
“Pupils and teachers will be screened for malaria and other health conditions, alongside receiving free consultation and drugs at the event,” he stated.
The campaign is expected to end on May 31, 2022, with a public lecture on the topic, “What you need to know about malaria?”
BY JONATHAN DONKOR
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