Protecting children in Malawi from civilisation diseases

In Malawi, more and more children are surviving infancy and the mortality rate from infectious diseases is slowly declining. That is the good news. The bad news, however, is that so-called diseases of civilisation, i.e. diseases that occur in many parts of the world, such as obesity, diabetes, asthma, high blood pressure, migraines and depression, will become much more prevalent among young people in the future. They mainly affect older children and young people, who are increasingly living in an urban environment that is changing their lifestyles: They move less and access unhealthy food more easily. The risks of obesity and secondary diseases are increasing. But children with malignant or mental illnesses are also underserved. Child health professionals in Malawi are ill-prepared for these new threats.

Funding for two projects over at least five years

The Else Kröner-Fresenius Foundation is therefore funding a project in Malawi over five years with around 2 million euros. The Friede Springer Endowed Professorship for Global Child Health at Witten/Herdecke University (UW/H) is intended to promote the necessary changes in the training of doctors and nurses, develop and implement guidelines and assess the success of these steps at the end. "We are grateful for the generous funding. It helps us to prepare the health system in the country for these diseases and to protect children and young people through prevention," says Prof. Dr Ralf Weigel, holder of the endowed professorship, describing the "Malawi Else Kröner Child Health Programme" project. In addition to the UW/H, the Malawian Paediatricians Association PACHA and the Kamuzu University of Health Sciences in Malawi are also involved. "We are working closely with experts in the country to help them help themselves," says Weigel, outlining the project. Initially, 16 health facilities with particularly high needs were selected in six of the 22 districts. In the programme, 170 health professionals will care for more than 100,000 children per year.

The Else Kröner-Fresenius Foundation has launched a special call for proposals to improve child health in developing countries and will fund two projects for at least five years with a total of three million euros. In addition to the Malawi project, funding will also be provided for a project that trains paediatricians in Nepal and elsewhere in the use of ultrasound equipment in order to detect and treat illnesses earlier. 69 non-profit, non-governmental organisations as well as universities and university institutions from Germany applied for funding.