The move is hinged on maintaining a clean and healthy environment which is key to the prevention of such diseases, Mrs Admire Owusu, Municipal Disease Control Officer has stated.

Speaking to the GNA at the sidelines of a community engagement campaign at Assin Fosu, she said Ghana, was a hyper-endemic with all-year round malaria transmission, as statistics have shown that about 3 million malaria cases were reported yearly with over 4,000 deaths. 

The burden of malaria was extremely heavy on Africa in general and Ghana in particular where children under-five years and pregnant woman were vulnerable. "It is important as a nation to develop and adopt appropriate behaviours that would make the nation malaria free",   The district had therefore put a strategy in place for malaria control and the other sanitation diseases to include a sustained public education on sound hygienic practices like the desilting of gutters, clearing of weeds and the draining of stagnant waters.

"Keeping the environment clean, sleeping under treated mosquito nets and using correct and recommended anti-malaria drugs for malaria were the best methods of preventing malaria" To help remedy the problem, she called on individuals, groups, parents and faith-based organisations to join the Ghana health service in the fight against environmental insanitary conditions which gave rise to the breeding of mosquitoes.

She indicated that Faith Based Organisations (FBOs) in particular should encourage their members in the various communities especially children and pregnant women to sleep under treated mosquito nets as a preventive measure.

"FBOs must come together and play the lead role in the fight against malaria from homes, churches, Mosque and schools as well as market places and the community at large", she advised.