the fight against malaria – a challenge for the world community

“We are not tilting at windmills,” insists Dr Steven Phillips, “we are starting to reap the fruit of our endeavours.” ExxonMobil medical director Dr. Steven Phillips tells us about his crusade against one of the world’s most ravaging diseases.

The ExxonMobil medical director for Global Issues and Projects is referring to the work of a number of highly committed groups and organisations worldwide that have joined forces to improve measures against the spread of malaria.

Dr. Phillips has dedicated much of his professional life and invested a lot of personal energy to fighting malaria.

“Progress is visible, but slow, so for those dedicated to impact, it’s more of a commitment than simply a job,” he explains.

Based in Fairfax, Virginia, Dr. Phillips oversees the Corporation's “outside-the-fenceline” community and public health programmes throughout its global operations.

In this capacity, he has worked closely with governments, NGOs, UN agencies, multilateral, faith-based and community organisations and the private sector in fostering public-private partnerships as a platform to address urgent global health priorities, such as the fight against malaria.

In our interview, Dr. Phillips discusses the current situation as well as the prospects of restraining the disease.

Can malaria ever be eradicated?
It is extremely difficult to predict the likelihood of breakthrough discoveries in the coming years, especially new drugs, vaccines and other tools. There is a lot of cutting-edge research under way, but no one has a crystal ball. At present, there doesn’t seem to be a magic solution in sight.

Still, even with today’s tools, eradication is possible to some degree, such as in restricted geographical areas like islands where there is little or no migration.

What will ExxonMobil be focusing on in the near future?
One urgent issue is better data management. We need metrics, because, as we say in our core business, if you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it.

The problem with malaria becomes clear when you look at the human death toll. Estimates range from one million to three million fatalities a year, but nobody really knows the true impact. So we need better ways of evaluating the effects of our actions.

We are committed to collaborating closely with the global business community, national governments and local healthcare organisations to implement measurement systems. And we, along with other major donors, need to know what results are achieved with the money we give. We are held accountable for the return on our investment.

If the results are positive, it may generate more investment and we can save more lives. Our goal is to use market mechanisms, extend public-private partnerships and get more people on board.

What are the main problems facing your initiative?
We have the challenge of fundraising in areas with little familiarity with malaria or its human toll. In the US and Europe, we are trying to raise awareness of malaria as a public issue even though it is still considered a predominantly African problem.

In Europe, malaria is not at the top of the health agenda. There is even a rivalry of sorts with HIV/AIDS, which northern countries are more directly impacted by. But I do feel a growing awareness for malaria, notably in the UK and in Germany.

The main challenge – and I realised it again when travelling in remote parts of the Zambezi river in Zimbabwe – is about implementation. Reaching and educating people requires money, infrastructure and the commitment of African political leaders. We can’t just walk in there and distribute drugs and bed nets. It is much more complicated.

Talking about the US, can you give our European readers some background on the collaboration between ExxonMobil andAmerican Idol Gives Back?
American Idol is a very popular TV show, similar to talent shows like Deutschland sucht den Superstar in Germany. It created a charity fundraising campaign named American Idol Gives Back that encourages viewers to donate for health and other charitable causes.

Through the programme, ExxonMobil donated $10 million (EUROS 6.3 million) directly to Malaria No More, a non-profit organisation that works to increase knowledge of the disease among the public, policymakers and businesses, while engaging individuals, organisations and corporations to provide life-saving bed nets and other critical interventions.

ExxonMobil is the biggest private company outside the pharmaceutical industry to support the fight against malaria. We are directly concerned by the disease because we are one the largest direct foreign investors on the continent and we have thousands of workers in malaria-risk areas. ExxonMobil is a very experienced operator in Africa and our employees and families know the risk and toll first-hand.

We have a comprehensive workplace malaria control programme that protects their health and we strive to make more people in our communities and host countries benefit from our leadership and expertise.

What about Europe – are there similar initiatives?
In the UK, there are initiatives around Red Nose Day and in Germany there is a growing awareness for malaria issues. Initiatives and conferences around the last World Malaria Day in April were important steps in the right direction.

I attended the Bonn conference on malaria in April with 120 experts. It was coorganised by the European Alliance Against Malaria. I listened to some very interesting discussions and met an encouraging mixture of distinguished academic and NGO people.

Do you consider World Malaria Day a success?
Yes, it was fantastic. For the first time ever, there was a sentinel African event in Zambia and a lot of coordinated activity and media coverage worldwide. Malaria awareness is gaining speed, since it is now commonly understood that the human toll is unacceptable and that the disease has a great social and economic impact.

There were big events around the world – in New York, Washington DC, Berlin and Livingstone – with intensive media coverage. They give momentum to further initiatives. I hope the growing international co-ordination leads to synergy.

Last May, I attended a reception where British Prime Minister Gordon Brown gave a passionate speech on malaria. He launched the Call to Action, a global effort to accelerate progress on achieving the Millennium Development Goals, and he also made a surprise appearance on the American Idol show, where he announced the UK pledge to purchase 20 million bed nets.

What are the perspectives?
We have to provide ongoing efforts to achieve measurable results, otherwise there is a risk that the international community will lose interest and move on to the next cause.

This happened in the 1950s, when, after a period of strong commitment, malaria fell into a lengthy period of oblivion, because no quick-fix results were achieved. I am looking forward to the G8 summit in Japan, where malaria will probably be a prominent part of the agenda.

You are currently involved in the Zambezi River project. How did the idea of the expedition come up?
We started with an idea to commemorate Livingstone’s famous voyage on the Zambezi River 150 years ago, during which his wife died of malaria. Some years later, he too fell victim to the disease.

Helge Bendl, a young German adventurer and award-winning journalist, wanted to retrace that expedition and it seemed a good idea to link it to the malaria issue. He was joined by Andy Leemann, a Swiss boating expert who had run some of the world's most challenging rivers. Together they made a great duo.

What role did ExxonMobil play and what was your job?
ExxonMobil is proud to be a lead sponsor of the Zambezi Expedition, which we hope will help galvanise international support in the fight against malaria. We value the partnership of African governments and ten sponsors drawn across all sectors, with the emphasis on delivering life-saving treatments to people in need.

I served as the link to ExxonMobil and the company’s Africa Health Initiative as well as to Roll Back Malaria, Malaria No More and other sponsors and implementing organisations. So part of my job was organising the funding of the project.The other part was partnership management – assisting with government, private sector permissions and support. There are areas along the river where military assistance was needed.

An important aspect was getting media coverage to increase the reach of the project. Putting together the logistics, malaria programme content and media and communications aspects of the expedition enabled its success. It required the dedication, hard work and co-ordination of dozens of people, and I had the privilege of heading the steering committee that combined their talents.

Did you actually participate in the journey?
I had the unique opportunity to participate during the early days of the expedition as part of a team of 12 people – health experts, doctors, translators, crew and journalists. We passed through remote and deserted places, where the occasional village on the river consisted of three or four huts. The people had no link to the outside world. They live on subsistence fishing, but can’t swim and fear the water, so they do it with sticks from the river banks.

Is malaria a threat to them?
The disease is part of their lives, but they have no idea how to prevent or treat it. Blood tests, bed nets and drugs were completely unknown to them. And this really illustrates the essential challenges in the fight against malaria. We need to raise awareness among those people and help them to help themselves. Infrastructure and political support are a prerequisite to mobilising this kind of aid.

The Abuja declaration of 2000 aimed at halving malaria deaths by 2010. Where are we today?
We have to admit we are falling short of this ambitious target. But the worldwide community has achieved a lot and reduced the death toll in many countries like Rwanda, Ethiopia and Mozambique, especially among pregnant women and small children.

ExxonMobil established its Africa Health Initiative in 2000 in support of the Abuja Declaration on Roll Back Malaria in Africa. Since then, we have committed about $50 million to fight malaria at the community level, and that’s gone towards treatment and vaccine research and on raising awareness and international support.

We have to intensify our efforts and aim at supporting the reaching of important international targets like the UN Millennium Development Goals.

For news and information on the Zambezi River project, visit www.zambezi-expedition.org