The International Federation of Red Cross
and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC)

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is grouped into 181 National Societies, with the Federation in Geneva serving as the secretariat. The organization also comprises regional and country delegations and the International Committee of the Red Cross, whose main functions are political conventions and humanitarian assistance in times of war.

The IFRC has focused its public health strategy in Africa and has now committed to a 10-year program that will include partnerships in volunteer management, food security, HIV/AIDS and public health. Malaria programs will be a major focus in this effort, and already, commitment can be seen by the IFRC’s representation on the Roll Back Malaria and Global Fund boards. In addition to malaria, its reach can be seen in the Polio and Measles Campaigns where 15,000 to 50,000 volunteers are being utilized to immunize children in Africa. To date, the Polio Campaign has vaccinated more than 50 million children, and the Measles Campaign has vaccinated over 39 million children.

Malaria Prevention

The malaria prevention component is integrated through the distribution of insecticide-treated nets, long-lasting nets and re-treatment kits in addition to medical initiatives like deworming and vitamin A supplementation. The first projects that applied this approach were in Ghana and Zambia, with BASF contributing to the Zambian mission. These projects showed that the distribution of FENDONA^® insecticide for re-treatment of insecticide-treated nets throughout the campaigns, did indeed increase distribution to the targeted populations, children under five and pregnant women. It was also estimated that this initiative reduced the malaria burden by as much as 50 percent.

Other opportunities exist for BASF as a partner to IFRC. One approach with the IFRC is to become a partner of the Foundation for the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. The Foundation is in the process of raising funds for the Federation’s part in an international partnership against malaria in the targeted African countries: the Central African Republic, Congo, Ethiopia, Gabon, Guinea Bissau, Guinea Equatorial and Liberia.