Christian Council calls for mindset change towards environment

The Christian Council of Ghana (CCG) has called for a sustained mindset change towards environmental care and cleanliness as part of efforts to eliminate malaria in Ghana and across sub-Saharan Africa.

The council made the call in a statement signed by the Reverend Dr Cyril Fayose, General Secretary, to mark this year’s World Malaria Day, observed on the theme: ‘Driven to end malaria: Now we can. Now we must.’

The council noted that malaria, mostly found in tropical and subtropical climates, continued to pose a major public health challenge, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa.

It said the disease killed more than 569,000 people annually, accounting for about 95 per cent of global malaria deaths, with children under five years making up about 75 to 76 per cent of the fatalities.

The council commended the World Health Organisation (WHO) for the relevance of this year’s theme and called for increased global funding and stronger collective action to end the disease.

“In this AI-driven 21st Century, the global community, especially the millions of people living in malaria-prone sub-Saharan Africa, can and must fight to end the scourge of malaria,” the statement highlighted.

Again, the council said malaria could be significantly reduced if people took the biblical mandate in Genesis 2:15 to care for the environment seriously.

As part of efforts to promote environmental responsibility, the CCG said it was partnering the Ministry of Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs to launch the Environmental Care and Cleanliness (ECC) Programme on Thursday, April 30, 2026, at the Rev. Paul Wiegrabe Parish of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church, Ghana in Nima.

It mentioned that the initiative formed part of broader efforts to encourage cleaner communities and reduce environmental conditions that promote mosquito breeding.

The council also noted that this year’s annual Christian Home Week celebrations would feature a study booklet on the theme: ‘A clean environment: Our responsibility!’ as part of awareness creation and advocacy.

It then urged the global community and stakeholders in Ghana to promote community-level environmental management and personal protection strategies in order to help end malaria and its related challenges.

Furthermore, the statement called on both governmental and non-governmental stakeholders to collaborate in sustaining environmental cleanliness initiatives to protect lives and improve public health.

“On this occasion of World Malaria Day, therefore, the CCG calls on governmental and non-governmental stakeholders to work together to end malaria through a sustained mindset change on general environmental care and cleanliness initiatives,” it added.

The Council wished all Ghanaians a meaningful World Malaria Day celebration. –GNA