Mosquito nets, answers and hope: DELGEME Plus raises awareness among high school students in Bamako
As part of World Malaria Day, the DELGEME Plus program, in partnership with Lycée La Fontaine, organized an awareness day for adolescents.
This campaign aimed to:
– Fill an often-ignored gap: malaria prevention in children over 12.
In recent years, efforts to protect children under 5 have borne fruit thanks to seasonal chemoprevention, treated mosquito nets, and now the RTSS vaccine. Mali became the 21st country to have introduced this vaccine on April 25, 2025. However, despite this significant progress, adolescents remain vulnerable to self-medication and lack information on how to effectively combat malaria.
In light of this, the DELGEME Plus team decided to raise awareness directly in the field, in front of more than 200 students. Dr. Aminatou Koné led an interactive session on malaria: its symptoms, its mode of transmission, its sometimes serious consequences, and the best ways to protect oneself. A practical demonstration on the use of impregnated mosquito nets was followed with great interest.
The students also learned the basics of diagnosis with a presentation on preparing and reading slides under a microscope.
A final quiz measured the students’ attention and engagement. The reward: treated mosquito nets to take home (a symbolic yet useful gesture).
More than 50 students answered the questions brilliantly, proving that effective awareness-raising can bear fruit.
Better-informed youth is already a victory against malaria.
Please click on the link to watch the video of the day.
