According to the World Health Organization half of the world’s population are at risk of malaria. While there are four parasites that can cause malaria in humans, Plasmodium falciparum is by far the most deadly and common, this strain is prevelant in Zambia.

Malaria disease caused by P. falciparum may result in death within hours or a few days of infection especially in those with a low immunity such as children, pregnant women, people with AIDS and travelers with little or no malaria. It can also result in the miscarriage of pregnant women, low birth-weight infants, developmental disabilities and other complications.

Zambia Malaria Stats

- 4.7 million cases of Malaria were reported in Zambia, 2006 (population is 12 million)
- Globally malaria is the biggest killer of man, especially in Africa
- 75% of people who die from malaria are children under 5 mostly in sub-Sahara Africa

Our Malaria Projects

The Butterfly Tree helps to increase awareness and raise funds to assist Zambia’s fight against malaria. The charity provides malaria testing kits, mosquito nets and educational workshops in remote villages. Early testing is imperative; although malaria cannot be cured it can be easily treated. Workshops inform the people of the importance of being tested and how sleeping under insecticide-treated nets can save lives.

Help Prevent Malaria

Just £2 will buy tesing kit and £5 will buy a mosquito net and save lives.

All donations go directly to malaria projects - providing funds for prevention and testing of malaria.

Nothing pleases me more than to learn that our projects are making a difference. When we started the under fives’ feeding program to help HIV mothers it was the first of its kind in Zambia. The Butterfly Tree provides formulae to replace breastmilk in HIV positive mothers to prevent the tansmission of HIV and AIDS in Zambia from mother to infant. Many babies also suffer from malnutrition having being breastfed for the first six months.  After six months the chances of transmission increase so we provide the formulae and vitamin supplements to give the babies a chance. Last week all the babies on the program were tested and everyone of them was HIV negative.

HIV/AIDS in Zambia: these babies are healthy and free of HIV

Although the charity has raised the funds thanks must also go to the hard-working medical staff at Mukuni Village who run our health projects. Donations received during last years GlobalGiving Challenge also boosted our HIV/AIDS programs and will enable us to carry out workshops and voluntary testing for more rural villages in the Mukuni Chiefdom. For the past three years Saga Charitable Trust has provided us with funds to support our malaria program. Every year there is a shortfall of mosquito nets and malaria testing kits, 75% of people who die from Africa malaria are children under the age of five in Sub-Sahara Africa. It is vital that these vulnerable young children are protected and if tested in the early stages malaria can easily be treated.

This year besides continuing our support at Mukuni and Katapazi clinics we are building a house to accomodate medical staff for N’songwe Village. The community have built a clinic but have been unable to open it as there is no staff housing; at present the community members have to walk the long distance to Mukuni Health Centre. With these facilities we have a better chance to tackle the HIV and AIDS in Zambia and Africa malaria.

Due to lack of funds the pre-school was at risk of closure. The Butterfly Tree has built a new, fully equipped classroom with outdoor play area and also funds two pre-school teachers’ and a helper’s salaries. Pre-schools do not receive government backing. The teachers make the school uniforms and use the profits to pruchase supplies. Now there are now 205 children attending three classes throughout the day.

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Kamwi, a remote school in the Mukuni Chiefdom, goes up to grade 5. The school needs to be upgraded as the children have to walk great distances to get to Mukuni Basic School, crossing elephant paths on the way. The younger children are frightened and run to school becoming too tired to do their lessons. The Butterfly Tree is funding a three-bay classroom.

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The Butterfly Tree has four projects underway to help the HIV/AIDS pandemic. We are funding voluntary testing programs; sponsoring HIV/AIDS orphans, a feeding program to help prevent mother to child transmission, the first to be initiated in Zambia. Working with TME, who provide educational DVDs, The Butterfly Tree is distributing them throughout the nation and translating them into local languages.

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Test

The Butterfly Tree sanitation project has provided seventeen pit-latrine toilets for Mukuni Village. Thirteen are for the schools and teachers and four for the community. Lack of sanitation is these rural communities causes a number of health problems. We are also working with TME to provide educational DVDs on Health and Hygiene.

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The Butterfly Tree is funding a project for widows to have a sustainable income. By providing the materials the woman can make the school uniforms, clothing, basket ware and jewellery to sell in the curios centre. Many women are left with several children to support and have no way of earning a living. Mostly men do the wood carvings to sell to the tourists.

Children from remote villages walk over 10 miles each way to school, departing at 4am and returning home at 7pm, on only one meal a day. Cunninghams sponsor a feeding program at Mukuni for 500 pupils, providing a daily nutritional meal. The charity provides an under fives feeding program, for undernourished infants and to replace breastfeeding in mothers who are HIV positive.

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The Mukuni Basic School has an addition of the first rural high school in the district. Principal Mr Presley Mulenga was struggling to make progress due to the lack of government funds. Since The Butterfly Tree’s involvement the school has advanced tremendously, find out more about the school and the work that has been going on.

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Ngandu School is the second school supported by The Butterfly Tree. We have fully restored two classrooms and added two higher grades and put in a bore hole. Several pupils from the school are included in our orphan sponsorship program and we are currently building a teacher’s house. Many children from the school attend the Mukuni high school.

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