Who we are: Cover Africa is a Cornell Student Organization dedicated to malaria intervention
in Africa. This year, Cover Africa has partnered with GHEI to offer short- term
volunteer projects to enable those interested in international volunteer work
to gain the experience they desire and to help the community. This is an opportunity
for you to explore development work and get a sense of how you can be the force
of change in the future, no matter where you end up. Cover Africa and GHEI offer
a unique experience to discover how much a small group of people can do to strengthen
a community, particularly in the fight against malaria.
In order to take action to help prevent malaria we have created a service learning
trip and course which are directly in line with our Cover Africa goals. This will
be the first year of the program. Our mission is to accomplish the following:
educate students, conduct research and distribute bed nets in Ghana, and evaluate
our intervention and research
Why malaria: It is estimated that one child dies in Africa every 30 seconds from malaria.
The toll of this painful and dangerous disease is high: UNICEF and the World Health
Organization estimate that malaria infects over 300 million people per year, 90%
of them in sub-Saharan Africa. Children who survive malaria usually experience
residual health consequences such as blindness, chronic anemia, seizures, and
brain damage.
Why bednets: Malaria is transmitted by mosquito bites, mostly at night. Insecticide Treated
Bed Nets create a protective barrier against mosquitoes, the malaria carriers,
and kills mosquitoes on contact. If available, bed nets would decrease the incidence
of malaria by at least 60% per year. It costs only ten dollars to produce a net,
distribute it, and provide use training. Together we can cover Africa.
