Sagbokoji is one of the three villages on an island in the Lagos Bay that we surveyed for our Malaria-Free Zone projects in November 2005. Although equally qualified, the team (George Ayittey, Thompson Ayodele and Thomas Adedayo) picked Itu-Agon because it best met the criteria we were looking for . Igbo-Alejo came in second and therefore the natural choice for the expansion of the MFZ projects in August 2006. When more funds became available in December 2006, it was only natural to do Sagbokoji, the remaining village.

Our local coordinators (Thompson Ayodele and Thomas Adedayo) had already done all the ground work by the time I arrived in Nigeria on Virgin Nigeria Airways on December 21. The village had been fumigated, bed nets (long-lasting Cypernet) and anti-malarial drugs had been purchased from SWIPHA and transported by canoe to the village; T-shirts and caps had been ordered and delivered; and media coverage had all been arranged.

I was picked up at my hotel by the team at about 10:30 am. The distribution of bed nets to the villagers was to begin at 11:00 am and we were running late. A few blocks from the hotel, we abandoned Thomas’s van. The legendary traffic jam in Apapa, Lagos, made any prospect of getting to the village before noon impossible. The traffic jam had been made more severe by the holiday season. It was the same in Accra, Ghana, where every Tom, Dick and Harry had descended on Accra for Christmas shopping. In Lagos, we hopped on the notorious motorbike taxis and sailed through the traffic jam to the shores of the Lagos Bay.

There to meet us was a canoe-load of village cultural performers. We hopped into another canoe and followed them to the village of Sagbokoji. We were all clad in our new T-shirts and caps. The inscription on the caps read: “Hedge Funds/Free Africa Foundation Project.” The T-shirts read “Malaria-Free Zones” on the front.

After about a 10-minute canoe ride, we landed on the shores of the village and were met by a throng of jubilant villagers. A group of village youth, identifiable by the white T-shirts they were all wearing, led us into the village with drumming and dancing.

I made a brief speech in English, which was translated into the local dialect by the leader of the Village Youth Association for the villagers. I acknowledged the additional requests the Baale made and assured them that we shall consider them after we rid the village of malaria. However, the work cannot be done by us alone; they need to play their part as well in order to make the project sustainable.

I then presented the ITNs and the anti-malarial medication to the Baale on behalf of Ann Marguerite, who had adopted the village. There was a huge round of applause and jubilation.

To block impostors, fraudsters and freeloaders from other villages from raiding the ceremony, the local coordinators had devised a brilliant plan. Each resident of Sagbokoji received two "chits" from the Baale (the chief), who was the best person to determine who lived in the village or not. A total of 3,000 chits were printed. A "chit" was required from a resident in order to receive a bed net and anti-malarial drugs, which came in four different packages in different colors. The packages were for pregnant women, children under the age of five, children between five and ten years of age, and adults.

The women were first to receive their bed nets and patiently formed a queue, to the displeasure of the men. Thomas assured them that there were bed nets for all. Sensing the potential for jostling, Thompson and Thomas wisely separated pregnant women and nursing mothers from the crowd and distributed bed nets to them.

Fortunately, the distribution ceremony was orderly and well-organized, having learned from a particularly embarrassing experience in Ghana at our first MFZ in Yawkoko in Dec 2005. Fights broke out when residents from other villagers ambushed bed net recipients of Yawkoko. Some came armed with cutlasses (machetes). Mercifully, there were no injuries and residents of other villages were assured that their turn too would come.

As a precaution, however, we consult with the local chiefs about “safety.” In the case of Nkyenenkyene in Ghana, the chief advised against placing the entire batch on public display at the ceremony. The entire batch could be photographed separately but only a few should be placed on display “for the cameras.” Then after the ceremony, they will diligently distribute the bed nets to each village resident.

After a brief interlude, I sneaked out of the event to have a short press conference with a group of newspaper reporters. The reporters, this time around, were more accommodating. In earlier interviews, they asked persistent questions about the “Malaria-Free Zones”: Who funds the projects, what is their motivation, where else in Africa are MFZs being established, etc. etc. But, this time around, after having done two other Malaria-Free Zones on the island and having seen the results, the reporters were far more accommodating, polite and appreciative of our efforts.

George B.N. Ayittey, Ph.D.

Washington, DC