Business Alliance Against Malaria launched at 1st Malaria Congress
The inaugural Malaria World Congress was held in Melbourne, Australia from 1–5 July 2018 with the aim of providing a global mechanism for all stakeholders — those in affected communities, in government, in policy development, in implementation, in program finance, and in research — to gather and share information to build a solid framework for collaborative action against malaria. The congress organizers declared that the event’s first objective was to facilitate collaboration between practitioners, researchers, community members, governments, and non-governmental organizations. The Business Alliance Against Malaria elected to publicly announce its launch alongside the congress because of the event’s global convening power and its exceptional focus on multisectoral collaboration. In its first engagement as BAAM, the Alliance convened business leaders in Melbourne on the sidelines of the First Malaria World Congress. The event, a reception, was held on the evening of Tuesday, 3 July in partnership with The RBM Partnership to End Malaria and the Asia-Pacific Leaders Malaria Alliance. These high-level partners helped to affirm the credibility and importance of the Business Alliance Against Malaria, and representatives from both organizations spoke during the course of the evening.
The RBM Partnership to End Malaria spoke about their gratitude for BAAM’s longstanding commitment to providing strategic policy advice with the aim of accelerating elimination. Further, the RBM Partnership indicated that they look forward to continuing to work with BAAM in the future, as both BAAM and the Partnership have recently spent time refreshing their missions and scope.
The Asia-Pacific Leaders Malaria Alliance (APLMA) also spoke about their commitment to harnessing the power of businesses in the fight against malaria. APLMA recently launched the M2030 Initiative, a partnership led by leading Asian corporations to raise awareness and funds to support malaria programs. Money raised by the M2030 Initiative are channeled to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria to be used to support malaria programs throughout Asia.
Finally, Sherwin Charles, BAAM Co-Chair and CEO of the Goodbye Malaria Foundation, and Justin McBeath, Market Segment Manager, Malaria Vector Control at Bayer spoke about the Alliance’s vision and mission. The Business Alliance Against Malaria (BAAM), is a multi-industry action group to fight malaria, formerly known as the Private Sector Malaria Coalition. Its launch at the Malaria World Congress commemorated the group’s intention to expand its scope and mission. Driven by the goal of ending malaria, the new Business Alliance Against Malaria (BAAM) works to mobilize the voice, resources, and expertise of local, regional, and multinational businesses in the fight against malaria. Further, Sherwin introduced the work of Nando’s Goodbye Malaria Foundation. He illustrated the impact that the Goodbye Malaria Foundation has been able to make in advancing malaria prevention efforts in Mozambique, and discussed the value of mobilizing businesses in the global fight for elimination.
The event welcomed over 100 participants from a diverse set of both sectors and industries — attendees included representatives from food and beverage companies, the mining industry, and health product suppliers. The fact that the event was so well-attended and well-received represents a major success for BAAM.
The Alliance was able to showcase its high-level partnerships with well-known institutions such as the RBM Partnership and APLMA; and, was further able to highlight the unique value that business is able to bring to the fight against malaria through the case study of Goodbye Malaria’s fantastic work in Mozambique.
peaking about the launch, Caroline Desrousseaux, Co-Chair of the Alliance and a leader within Vestergaard, said “as highlighted by the recent WHO Malaria report, the fight against malaria has reached a critical juncture. We cannot expect to eliminate malaria using the tools and approaches that we have used in the past. In this context, we believe that businesses have a crucial role to play in supporting, accelerating, and delivering on the vision of a malaria-free world.”
