This video is about the 2008 BASF and Rotary tour to hospitals in Nigeria, giving mosquito nets and polio vaccines to the poor. Malaria is arguably the most severe vector-borne public health challenge facing Africa and many other regions of the world. Each year, malaria is responsible for over one million deaths. Children under the age of five and pregnant women are particularly at risk for malaria. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), in Africa alone, children represent 90 percent of the deaths caused by malaria. One of the greatest frustrations of malaria is that the disease can be prevented by taking the proper precautions. BASF Agricultural Products Division provides a comprehensive solution to control and potentially eradicate infectious diseases spread by insects. In addition, BASF provides innovative solutions to address the issue of food security in Africa. For decades, BASF has been committed to the fight against malaria and other tropical diseases. The company’s latest contribution is Interceptor, a mosquito net coated with the insecticide Fendona. The net remains effective against mosquitoes for several years. It thus meets the World Health Organization Pesticide Evaluation Scheme (WHOPES) requirements for a “Long lasting insecticide impregnated net” (LLIN). According to the WHO, the protection provided by these nets against the mainly night-active vector mosquitoes is the most effective means of preventing malaria infections. Simple, uncoated …

More than annoying, mosquitoes often carry disease like the potentially deadly West Nile virus. Seventeen-year-old 4-H member Ashley Buford brought together hundreds of 4-H youth and adults to control Crisp County, Georgia’s mosquito population to minimize the spread of West Nile. Ashley loves horses. She wanted to help prevent the dangerous infection when she learned that many horses in her area had become ill. Then, she found out that West Nile had killed seven people in her home state. “I thought, this is about more than horses, this is affecting our entire community!” Ashley said. In fact, more than 15000 human cases of the virus, which causes inflammation of the brain, have been reported in 48 states since 1999. Ashley conducted research and found that fathead minnows are natural predators of mosquito larvae. So, she put the minnows in her horses’ water troughs to see if the tiny fish devoured the larvae. It worked. The teen organized a 4-H Afterschool project in which youth and adults worked together to release minnows into standing water throughout the county. 4-H Afterschool is sponsored nationally by the JCPenney Afterschool Fund. The impact of Ashley’s project has been substantial. The mosquito population has decreased significantly, and no new local cases of West Nile virus have been reported.
Video Rating: 5 / 5