Princess Astrid of Belgium, as Special Representative of the Roll Back Malaria Partnership (RBM) and Professor Awa Marie Coll-Seck, Executive Director of RBM will visit Doha. She will lead the delegation to Riyadh, Abu Dhabi and Dubai from March 28 to April 3. This is one of a series of RBM initiatives in specifically targeting the countries of that region. The delegation who will meet with high level officials will advocate fighting Malaria and the Global Malaria Action Plan (GMAP). The GMAP fosters agreement among Malaria organisations on the goals, strategies, and activities to be achieved by 2010 and 2015 as well as the funds necessary to implement the Plan. Princess Astrid has been engaged as RBM Special Representative for two years and has visited countries in Africa to highlight progress in the malaria battle as well as research centres, malaria treatment and vaccine manufacturing companies in Europe. Her first engagement as Special Representative this year includes visits to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates and participation in World Malaria Day activities on April 25. “Countries in GCC Region could and should play an important role in the fight against Malaria, both a regional level, by helping Yemen for example, and at a global level,” said Hervé Verhoosel, External Relations Manager of the RBM who will be a member of the Delegation. “Malaria kills 3000 children a day in Africa and we can prevent and cure it. It is now time for the international community to do everything possible in order to achieve the targets for 2010 and 2015.”` RBM was launched in 1998 by the World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Development Fund (UNDF), and the World Bank to provide a coordinated approach to the global fight against Malaria. RBM is the global public-private partnership on worldwide malaria control and elimination. It is key to achieving six out of the eight Millennium Development Goals. http://thepeninsulaqatar.com/Display_news.asp?section=Local_News&subsection=Qatar+News&month=March2009&file=Local_News2009031814937.xml

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