Tens of thousands of fans turned up for the first of two Africa Live concerts staged in the Senegalese capital this weekend aimed at raising awareness in the fight against malaria.
The musicians took it in turns to appeal for mobilisation against the scourge, which kills one African child every 30 seconds and affects about 600-million people around the world, according to the United Nations World Health Organisation (WHO).
About 40 000 fans filled the stands of the Iba Mar Diop stadium on Saturday as the Orchestra Baobab of Senegal exhorted them to chant ”Down with Malaria” while other groups dedicated songs to ”those who have lost someone” in the epidemic.
Other Malian stars included the feminist singer Rokia Traore and fellow vocalist Salif Keita.
”There are very simple behaviors that can prevent outbreaks of malaria. All this is a matter of information, and information is also a question of means,” Traore said.
Corneille, a Canadian singer of Rwandan origin who survived the 1994 genocide in his country, had an emotional reception as he told the crowd how moved he was to be back on an African stage for the first time in a decade.
Several other big names, including Manu Dibango of Cameroon, Nigerian Seun Kuti (the son of the late Fela Anikulapo Kuti), and Awilo Longomba of the Democratic Republic of Congo, are in the line-up for Sunday’s concert at the same venue.
Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade and his French counterpart Jacques Chirac both sent messages of support to the concert organisers.
”Malaria is the leading cause of death in Africa. Victory [against the disease] will be the work of everyone, all their energy and all their initiatives,” Wade said in his message.
Chirac’s message read: ”The terrible toll of malaria is an insult to the human conscience. … It’s all the more shocking, all the more unacceptable, that we know how to combat this disease.”
The concert was organised by Senegalese star Youssou Ndour as part of the Roll Back Malaria Partnership launched in 1998 by the WHO, the UN Development Programme (UNDP), the UN Children’s Fund (Unicef) and the World Bank.
Information booths were set up at the stadium explaining how malaria is transmitted and how to use mosquito nets sprayed with insecticide to avoid infection.
Fans were enthusiastic about the initiative.
”We have already caught malaria, but the medicines are too expensive. To have good health in Africa you have to have money. So we have to mobilise against unhealthy practices and distribute mosquito nets to everybody,” said Naajwat from the Comoros.
”It’s good to raise awareness among people by using the big stars,” said Amina, a young Senegalese woman, as she waved her arms to the beat of the Malian Tuareg group Tinariwen.
”I think that it’s a good initiative to organise a concert in the fight against malaria, to raise awareness by showing it on television,” said another fan, Madeleine. – Sapa-AFP