New game launched on World Mosquito Day to highlight fight against killer disease

 

People can now contribute to the fight against malaria with a fun new game “Mash-quito”, released by anti-poverty organization ONE.

 

In the game, which is released to coincide with World Mosquito Day on Saturday, August 20th, players have to squish the insects that carry the life-threatening disease whilst avoiding the friendly birds.

 

The game, which was released in partnership with games developer Altered Gene, is designed to highlight the global effort to beat malaria, which is still a huge threat to millions, with hard-hitting facts about the disease popping up as players progress: 

 

• Children 5 and younger bear the brunt of malaria around the globe – 3 in 4 people who die from malaria are children. 
• Malaria cases are on the rise: there were 14 million more reported cases in 2020 than 2019, in large part due to the impact Covid-19 had on global efforts.
• Over 1 million people have received the new malaria vaccine since 2019. 

 

ONE is using the game to create a buzz around World Mosquito Day and the issues around fighting malaria. The aim of the game is to get people to share their score on the leaderboard and challenge friends to join the fight against malaria. 

 

Jenny Ottenhoff, Global Health Policy Director, said “Malaria remains one of the leading causes of death among children globally, and it’s completely preventable with more political will and innovation. This game is a unique way to highlight the issue, point to the solutions, and get people engaged to end the threat of this killer disease.”

 

This is an important year for the global fight against malaria, with the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria having a ‘replenishment conference’, where it will seek funds to continue its life-saving work, in September. Since its creation, the Global Fund has helped reduce deaths from malaria by 25% in the hardest hit countries.

 

ENDS

 

Mash-quito is made in partnership with Altered Gene Games: http://alteredgene.co.uk/index.html 

Although this game depicts squashing mosquitos, in no way does the ONE Campaign or any partners condone animal abuse.