FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 29, 2007

Contact: Elizabeth Mullen
(202) 537-6248, office
EMullen@cathedral.org

CATHEDRAL’S CENTER FOR GLOBAL JUSTICE & RECONCILIATION PROGRAM
RECEIVES FIRST LADY’S SUPPORT

“Together Against Malaria” Discussed
during Mrs. Bush’s Recent Visit to Mozambique

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On June 27th in Maputo, Mozambique, First Lady Laura Bush announced the commencement of Together Against Malaria (TAM), an inter-faith program created by Washington National Cathedral and partners to combat that country’s leading cause of death.

Funded through the President’s Malaria Initiative by a grant worth nearly $2 million, TAM is expected to reach 1.5 million Mozambicans in Zambesia province. More than 250 faith leaders from ten religions will learn how to provide health education, train other individuals and mobilize their unique faith communities to work together in combating the spread of malaria.

The Cathedral’s Center for Global Justice and Reconciliation (CGJR) is providing technical support for the program.

“With the entire population of Mozambique at risk for this disease, including an estimated 3.6 million children under the age of five and 900,00 pregnant women, Washington National Cathedral is a committed partner in fighting malaria,” said Jean Duff, deputy director of the Cathedral’s Center for Global Justice and Reconciliation. “We are grateful to First Lady Laura Bush for her support.”

On the ground, management of TAM is through the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) while the interfaith coalition, the Inter-Religious Campaign Against Malaria in Mozambique (IRCMM), will implement the program.

IRCMM members include leaders from the Seventh-Day Adventist Church, the Roman Catholic Church, the Islamic Congress of Mozambique, the Islamic Council of Mozambique, the Anglican Church, the United Methodist Church, the Hindu Community, Assemblies of God, the Christian Council of Mozambique, and the Baha’i Community.

Six million cases of malaria are reported each year in Mozambique, contributing to the country’s poverty by reducing productivity.

Photo Credits:
Top left: Mrs. Bush and Bishop Dinis. Mrs. Bush with Bishop Dinis Singulane, the co-chair of the Inter-Religious Campaign Against Malaria in Mozambique and key member of the TAM campaign. Photo by Darcy de Leon/ADRA.
Bottom right: Mrs. Bush and Children. Mrs. Bush visits and hands out insecticide-treated nets in Mozambique. Photo by Shealah Craighead/The White House.

For more information on the program, please visit the following links:

• CGJR Malaria Program brochure
• Together Against Malaria video “When the Rain Comes”
  • Watch video (Windows Media format)
  • Audio only (MP3) (right click to download)
• Additional articles on Mrs. Bush’s trip and TAM:
  • Remarks by the First Lady at the Maputo Seminary on President Bush’s Malaria Initiative
  • “Inter-Faith Coalition Launches Anti-Malaria Campaign” (Seventh-Day Adventist Church)

Learn more about the Cathedral’s
Center for Global Justice and Reconciliation.

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