Sierra Leone Red Cross Volunteer: Japwepwe Macarthy
Protecting his community from malaria

For more than a decade, 31-year-old Japwepwe Macarthy has been a dedicated Sierra Leone Red Cross volunteer with the community-based health program in Moyamba district. This rural area is located three and a half hours from Freetown, the country’s capital, where he supports six out of twelve chiefdoms in HIV/AIDS and malaria prevention. 

“I want to assist my country and help my neighbours,” says Japwepwe. “Serving my people makes me happy and proud knowing that I helped save a life by convincing someone to change their behavior.”

In early 2006, Japwepwe had been preparing for the long-anticipated national Red Cross malaria prevention campaign. His work included helping to train hundreds of Sierra Leone Red Cross volunteers from Moyamba. 

Traveling by motorbike, Japwepwe informed people from remote communities about the week-long health campaign in November 2006. From village to village, he encouraged families to bring their children under five years of age for a measles vaccination, deworming medication, vitamin A tablet, and the most tangible incentive, a free net from Canadian Red Cross to prevent malaria.  

During the November 20-26, 2006 campaign, Japwepwe helped staff many distribution points throughout Moyamba district. He helped direct families through the various distribution stations, answered questions, informed mothers about proper mosquito net practices, and at every occasion, encouraged the attendance of all eligible children. 

Japwepwe was one of more than 4,000 Sierra Leone Red Cross volunteers who handed out 875,000 nets directly to families at 900 distribution points throughout the country. The efforts of these volunteers helped reduce distribution costs, and made sure families were trained on how to hang and use the net to help prevent malaria infections.

At the end of this intensive week, the volunteers’ work continued.  Japwepwe and other volunteers went house-to-house across the district, undertaking “Hang Up” activities, to assure families were correctly using their new net and that the nets continued to be used.

“If the bed nets are not properly hung, mosquitoes will continue to bite, children will continue to die from malaria, and this initiative would have been in vain,” says    Japwepwe.  “These visits are an important part of protecting children from malaria.”

Thanks to Red Cross volunteers like Japwepwe, the Sierra Leone malaria campaign was judged a tremendous success.