Former captain of the English national football team, David Beckham, has lent his voice in the fight against malaria.
On Wednesday, he joined the Malaria No More, a United Kingdom-based organisation to launch the world’s first voice petition to end malaria with the campaign ‘Malaria Must Die, So Millions Can Live.’
In a short film using artificial intelligence video synthesis technology, Beckham petitions, ‘speaking’ nine languages, as he calls on the world to join the campaign and demand action by visiting the malariamustdie.com website.
This is in a bid to get the attention of world leaders ahead of critical funding decisions for the Global Fund, to tackle malaria in six months’ time.
Eight malaria survivors including Nigeria’s Dr. Elvis Eze, Marie Murorunkwere (Rwanda), Hermengild Mayunga (Tanzania), Hussein Omar (Sudan) and Jean Bosco Niyonzima (Rwanda), through the sportsman, are raising awareness with their stories on the devastating effects of the disease.
The 55-second video begins with Beckham speaking in English, saying, “Malaria isn’t just any disease. It is the deadliest disease there’s ever been.” He soon switches to fluent Spanish, Kinyarwanda, Arabic, French, Hindi, Mandarin, Kiswahili and Yoruba, with each language representing a part of the world affected by malaria.
For Eze, a malaria youth ambassador, whose voice features in the film speaking in Yoruba, “My life changed when I worked at a hospital in Lagos, Nigeria and I saw the intolerable toll of malaria. It doesn’t have to be this way. I now work for the NHS in the UK and have seen how this is a global challenge. Through the Voice Petition, we each have a chance to inspire change wherever we are.”
“I never thought about how important it is until I became a doctor. Seeing children die from malaria is something you never get away from,” he said.
The campaign is designed to amplify the voices of those affected by malaria and gives everyone the opportunity to speak out. Each voice collected via the petition will contribute to a unique piece of audio art known as a sound sculpture, grabbing the attention of leaders in a unique and memorable way.
According to a statement, Beckham said he has been working with Malaria No More UK for over 10 years and to be a part of this campaign and to help share some of the real stories behind malaria is really important to him.
The former Manchester United star, said, “Dr. Elvis Eze who was with us on set has suffered with malaria many times and as a doctor, he has seen how dangerous this disease can be. For me, it was so important to learn how he is using his experiences to raise awareness of malaria with young people in the UK and abroad. It’s unacceptable that malaria still kills a child every two minutes so please add your voice to the petition.”
David Beckham is a founding member of Malaria No More UK Leadership Council and a committed champion in the fight against malaria with over a decade of support for Malaria No More UK.
