Just from the narration alone, I knew it was a great conference and one did not need to be physically present to catch the economic boom it might have injected into the economy of Senegal.
The Multilateral Initiative on Malaria (MIM) had its 7th conference in Dakar, Senegal from the 15th to the 20th of April 2018. A conference of everybody who matters in the research and fight of the malaria menace. A brochure the narrator showed me indicated Dangote joined the number one Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to support the conference and even helped about 200 young African research scientists with travelling grant to attend the meeting.
The MIM 2018 conference registered about 2000 malaria research scientists and funding agents over 5-day hectic scientific sessions. The conference was held in a newly established Conference Center at Diamniadio about 30-40km from Dakar. The establishment demonstrated a country with a vision. Planning a village into an urban area with development (Diamniadio Lake City). All the participants were bused every day to and from the Conference Centre by the arranged transport system. The organizers provided meals and snack to every participant and crowned the occasion with a mammoth dinner featuring Youssou N’Dour, a man I got to know is an icon as far as music is concerned.
I described all these from what I got to know from Kwame Yeboah; a scientist and a participant who equally benefitted from the benevolence of Dangote and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation as a Travel Grant Awardee, for readers to know what I meant by the economic boom that Senegal experienced from the malaria conference organization over the period. Kwame Yeboah expressed his shock at the benefits the organizations involved were going to make and even the short term employment it would have given to the citizens of Senegal.
In his wishful thinking, his thoughts of how some people in Ghana would have benefitted and the Country if such an event was held in the former Gold Coast, went aloud and one of the participants from Ghana who heard Kwame, replied by revealing that Ghana also put in a bid to host the meeting but Senegal had a letter of support from the office of the Prime Minister compared to what Ghana submitted. The shock got intense because it was clear that a letter needed by the team that represented Ghana to bid to host the MIM 2018 from the Ghana Government was never received. If not from the office of the President or the Vice President, the worse should have been by the Minister of Health. Unfortunately, it never happened from what the source said. It is great to have such leaders who are always thinking about us, ironically. Why was it so difficult for the government to show such support to what would have contributed to our profile as a Nation and equally put us on the global map?
With Ghana selected as one of the Countries to implement the first malaria vaccine to be approved in the world, “if a similar support close to that of Senegal had been received, I have no doubt, Ghana would have been selected to host the malaria conference”, said the fact holder.
As a professional Medical Laboratory Scientists and a researcher, having been involved in the fight for the establishment of quality systems in our health delivery systems and hearing such retrogressing approach to issues, I find it difficult to know what our priorities to health and development in Ghana are as a nation.
It is my desire that we wake up and be wide alert in order not to lose chances to similar events as happened in Dakar, Senegal from the malaria community in the world. Though It happens once every four years, the waves it generated and rippling effects cannot be quantified.
As Country bent on meeting challenges head-on will not let programs such as the MIM 2018 pass by.
The health of Ghana must wake up from slumber.