It is amazingly sad to see how many people are either affected or die
of malaria in western Kenya. I am a young Kenyan woman living in
Kisumu, Kenya.  Kisumu is a small urban town located next to an
impressive fresh water lake, Lake Victoria, which comes both as a huge
blessing and a curse to the people of this region. It is a blessing in
the sense that its a source of livelihood  and employment to my people and
it is a curse in that it is is home to many mosquitoes, hence the high
rate of malaria cases in in this region. Kisumu is situated in a hot
and wet environ that is an ideal home to numerous mosquitoes.

It is quiet evident that many of the cases in the local hospitals are cases of
malaria. You go to a hospital and the cries of small children awakens
all the emotions in you. You immediately want to help them, but how?
My heart aches with pain when I walk into a general hospital. By
"general hospital" I mean a health facility that poor people can
access. Hence, it is packed; all these people want attention
from our overtaxed health workers. So there are long queues and long
days of waiting in understaffed general hospitals.

My heart goes out to those living below the poverty line, who have to
wait in this long queue, waiting for treatment to something that can
be reduced, if not completely prevented.

For the longest time I have been wanting to do something about it. I
look forward to the month of July when I, together with people who
have the same vision, will begin our work. We hope to reduce the
number of malaria cases in an area west of Kisumu. Thanks to G.Y.E.C
(the organization that I work for), Cliff, Ned, and several other
people for making this possible.

--Mona