Godrej Consumer Products Limited (GCPL) has signed a non-financial, tripartite, Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with theMinistry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of Uttar Pradesh, and Family Health India (FHI), a local affiliate of FHI 360 (a US-based NGO). This is the second MOU signed with a state Government by GCPL, the first being with the Government of Madhya Pradesh in January 2018, which details a long-term partnership and enlists responsibilities for each party to ensure wider reach and create a more sustainable model for implementing GCPL’s Project EMBED (Elimination of Mosquito Borne Endemic Diseases).
On April 25, 2017, World Malaria Day, GCPL committed to support a malaria free India by 2030 and commissioned Project EMBED, which aims to reduce morbidity and mortality caused by vector borne diseases. EMBED will cover 200 villages in the Bareily and Badaun districts of Uttar Pradesh and impact 1,50,000 people at risk from malaria. The project activities will include providing information, education and communication(IEC) materialto implement behavior changecommunication (BCC) campaigns focused on prevention and treatment of mosquito borne diseases. It will also provide training to local health workers, and support Government led vector control initiatives.
The MOU was signed by Godrej Consumer Products, Dr. Prabhakar Singh, Director General, Medical Health, Government of Uttar Pradesh and Sharad Malhotra, Director of FH India. Other government officials present included Dr. Mithilesh Chaturvedi, Director, communicable diseases, Mrs. V. HekaliZhimomi, Secretary Medical Health, Shri. Siddharth Nath Singh, Honourable Health Minister, Uttar Pradesh, ShriMahendra Singh, Honourable Minister of State, Medical and Health, and Shri Pankaj Kumar, Medical Director, National Health Mission.
Commenting on this partnership, Vivek Gambhir, Managing Director and CEO, Godrej Consumer Products Limited, said:
“As a company, Godrej has always actively championed social responsibility. We are deeply committed to driving the social progress of the communities that our businesses operate in. We have a ‘shared value’ approach to business growth and innovation. The idea is to link business success with social progress.
We have been working closely with the Government of Madhya Pradesh since we commissioned EMBED. We are very thankful for the support and encouragement that the Government and FHI have extended towards the elimination of mosquito-borne diseases in the state. We believe that by building strong partnerships and creating community engagement, we can make huge strides in our efforts towards eliminating malaria in India by 2030. We are encouraged by the progress made by EMBED in Madhya Pradesh and are looking forward to replicate our intervention and engagement model, and learnings in Uttar Pradesh.
Our overall goal is to improve awareness related to vector borne diseases, and increase adoption and usage of mosquito prevention strategies, which will significantly contribute to the reduction of the economic burden and loss in productivity caused by these diseases.”
