Malaria Consortium’s 2018 highlights of the year
January
Malaria Consortium began the year inducting two new recipients of the Dr Sylvia Meek scholarship in entomology. Watentena Amos and Ongunkomaya Funmilayo became the third and fourth students inducted, and they embarked on a two-year master’s programme in entomology at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka.
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Two successful applicants receive Dr Sylvia Meek scholarship in Nigeria
February
In February, Malaria Consortium marked the official end of the landmark ACCESS-SMC programme. Over three years, the partnership, led by Malaria Consortium, oversaw the distribution of 45 million seasonal malaria chemoprevention (SMC) treatments to eligible children across the Sahel region, resulting in a significant reduction of malaria cases while also catalysing the production of SMC drugs.
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Countries need to prioritize anti-malaria efforts like SMC. Here’s why.
March
March saw the launch of Malaria Consortium’s film on improving maternal and child health in Uganda through integrated community case management (iCCM). The iCCM-MaCS project, funded by Comic Relief, enabled us to expand the traditional iCCM approach to improve access to health services for pregnant women, new mothers and their babies, by improving links between the community and the formal health system.
Watch the film below.
April
April was a historic month in the fight to end malaria. At the landmark Malaria Summit held as part of the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in London, commitments worth £2.9bn ($4.1bn) were made towards efforts against malaria across the Commonwealth. This moment was a significant pushback against the findings of the 2017 World Malaria Report, which stated that global malaria cases had increased for the first time in a decade.
Alongside the summit, Malaria Consortium participated at the Multilateral Initiative on Malaria (MIM) conference in Dakar, Senegal, where the latest research and innovations in malaria are presented and discussed. From a base at Booth 123 to the symposium halls, Malaria Consortium experts presented the latest research and learning across digital health, net distribution, SMC distribution, and social and behaviour change.
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Historic investment commitments to rid the Commonwealth of malaria
Catch up on Malaria Consortium’s presentations from MIM 2018
May
The ARIDA project, funded by the la Caixa Foundation in cooperation with UNICEF, began field trials in May for the testing of the ‘ChARM’ device for diagnosing pneumonia. The trial looked to understand the acceptability of the device among health extension workers in southern Ethiopia where pneumonia continues to be a significant burden.
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Read the research brief here for the latest on the ARIDA project
June
In June, Malaria Consortium began an exciting new project funded by aid from the UK government. The Strengthening Uganda’s Response to Malaria (SURMa) project will be implemented in eight districts across the country. Working closely with districts and other partners, the project aims to improve access to — and uptake of — high-quality malaria prevention and control services.
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July
In July, Malaria Consortium launched a new round of seasonal malaria chemoprevention distributions across Burkina Faso, Chad and Nigeria. Supported by Good Ventures Foundation, Malaria Consortium has set a target to reach over 4.3 million children with SMC across the three countries.
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August
Malaria Consortium highlighted success stories from USAID’s Malaria Action Program for Districts in August. The project, led by Malaria Consortium, runs in Uganda and seeks to reduce the malaria burden specifically on children under five, youths (aged 18 to 30), pregnant women and women of childbearing age. Special emphasis is placed on innovative social and behaviour change communication approaches to reach all targeted communities efficiently and effectively.
Ernest Masereka was the subject of one success story which detailed his role in forming a village health club to address issues in his community of Rutoke. Once the club was formed, he persuaded members to contribute to a fund to help members with costs should someone get sick and need supplies.
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Ernest’s story: Rutoke’s key influencer sets up a village health club and ‘ambulance fund’
Learn more about USAID’s Malaria Action Program for Districts
September
To coincide with Global Goals Week in September, as a part of the United Nations General Assembly, Malaria Consortium launched a guide to its contribution to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The organisation strives to ensure its work contributes to achieving the SDGs, with projects contributing directly to 11 of the 17 goals.
Malaria Consortium also inducted a further two successful applicants to the Dr Sylvia Meek scholarship in entomology. This time at Mahidol University in Thailand, Shobiechah Aldillah Wulandhari, a national of Indonesia, and Kiattiyos Ruengthamchariya, a national of Thailand, were awarded the scholarship at the Wai Khru Day ceremony at the university by Malaria Consortium’s Global Technical Director, Dr James Tibenderana.
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Malaria Consortium and the Sustainable Development Goals
Introducing the latest Dr Sylvia Meek scholars in entomology
October
In October, Malaria Consortium participated at the Neglected Tropical Disease NGO Network (NNN) annual conference in Addis Ababa. Malaria Consortium experts hosted a key workshop, in collaboration with Ethiopia’s Federal Ministry of Health and Orbis, to provide a platform for policy makers, practitioners and researchers to discuss how primary healthcare for NTDs could be strengthened.
Malaria Consortium also officially endorsed the Principles for Digital Development, coinciding with the World Health Summit in Berlin where a new set of guidelines around digital investment were launched.
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NNN 2018: Integrating primary healthcare for NTDs
Malaria Consortium endorses the Principles for Digital Development
November
In a busy month, Malaria Consortium was confirmed as a ‘top charity’ by GiveWell for the third year in a row for its seasonal malaria chemoprevention programme. In their assessment, GiveWell stated that the programme “offers donors an outstanding opportunity to accomplish good with their donations”.
Malaria Consortium also marked the 10th annual World Pneumonia Day by underlining the burden pneumonia still places on vulnerable populations around the world. Over the past 10 years, Malaria Consortium has been one of the leading implementers of community-based primary healthcare programmes involving pneumonia diagnostic aids and treatment.
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Malaria Consortium programme chosen as ‘top charity’ by GiveWell for third year running
December
Malaria Consortium has ended the year on a high, participating at the Joint International Tropical Medicine Meeting in Bangkok, Thailand, while also convening dissemination events for the ARIDA and COMDIS-HSD projects in Ethiopia to analyse and communicate results.
Malaria Consortium also hosted its first webinar on the theme: “Let’s talk: how the Community Dialogue Approach helps communities to achieve better health”. The webinar complimented a new guide published by Malaria Consortium on how to successfully implement the Community Dialogue Approach, aimed at implementers.
