NOTE TO CORRESPONDENTS 'ROLL BACK MALARIA' CAMPAIGN TO BE LAUNCHED AT HEADQUARTERS TOMORROW

Press Release

NOTE TO CORRESPONDENTS 'ROLL BACK MALARIA' CAMPAIGN TO BE LAUNCHED AT HEADQUARTERS TOMORROW

A joint press conference at Headquarters by Executive Heads of four international agencies will officially launch the "Roll Back Malaria" campaign -- a new programme designed by the World Health Organization (WHO), with the full support of the World Bank, United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), to focus the world's attention and support on renewed and redoubled efforts to beat this scourge of the young and the poor.

The press conference, which will be held on Friday, 30 October, at 9 a.m. in room S-226, will be held by the following: Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland, Director-General of WHO; James Wolfensohn, President, World Bank; Carol Bellamy, Executive Director of UNICEF; and James Gustave Speth, Administrator of the UNDP.

The programme, a global partnership of United Nations agencies, bilateral development agencies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), development banks, governments of malaria-infected countries, and the public sector, will focus first on Africa, where 90 per cent of all malaria cases and where the vast majority of the estimated 1 million annual deaths among children occur.

The press conference with the Executive Heads will be followed at 11 a.m. in Conference Room 6 by a seminar for delegations, NGOs, media, and Secretariat staff given by technical representatives from each of the participating organizations.

For further information contact Richard Leclair or Celinda Verano at tel: (212) 963-6003/6000; fax: (212) 223-2920

For media accreditation, contact Sonia Lecca, tel: (212) 963-4642/7164 and fax: (212) 963-1893.

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