Soul Beat Africa

• * MALARIA PROJECTS AND PROGRAMMES: using drama, face-to-face communication, radio, and mobile phones...
• * RESEARCH AND STRATEGIES: communication to promote spraying, consistent net use, and effective treatment...
• * COMMUNITY-BASED APPROACHES: building capacity, developing job aids, and mobile caravans...
• * RESOURCES: for BCC evaluation, and net distribution and care...

• 1. No More Malaria Village Drama Outreaches, Podcasting and Programming Project - UgandaDuring World Malaria Month 2013, Peace Corps volunteers in Uganda implemented the Village Drama Outreaches, Podcasting, and Programming Project to provide people in the West Nile region with information about malaria prevention and control. Over the course of the month, the project included training for radio presenters on producing malaria programming, community drama performances, the production of a radio toolkit, and community and school-based discussions. The project was led and implemented by Peace Corps volunteers (PCV) in partnership with Radio Pacis, as part of the ongoing Stomping Out Malaria programme.
  
  
• 2. Rapid Access Expansion 2015 (RAcE 2015) - Malawi, Mozambique, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Niger, and NigeriaLaunched April 2012, the World Health Organization (WHO)'s 5-year Rapid Access Expansion 2015 (RAcE 2015) Programme is working to strengthen integrated community case management (iCCM) of malaria, pneumonia, and diarrhoea, as well as increase coverage of diagnostic, treatment, and referral services. With funding from the Government of Canada, the World Health Organisation has awarded grants to organisations working to use interpersonal, face-to-face communication to build capacity and equip community volunteers to recognise, diagnose, and treat diseases that can kill children. Specifically, community volunteers are being trained to recognise the symptoms of malaria in children under the age of 5 years, diagnose them with a rapid test, and treat those affected with an artemisinin-based combination therapy.
  
  
• 3. Africa Indoor Residual Spraying (AIRS) Project - Democratic Republic of the Congo The Africa Indoor Residual Spraying (AIRS) project, running from August 2011 to August 2014, is working to protect millions of people in 13 African countries from malaria by spraying insecticide on the walls, ceilings, and other indoor resting places of mosquitoes that transmit malaria. Working with families and communities, the project uses information, education and communication and behaviour change communication methodologies to ensure proper vacating of premises, adherence to safety precautions, and post-spray maintenance of house walls. The project has developed a mobile phone application to facilitate communication. It is using mass text messages to spray staff to send reminders, reinforce training, and motivate staff.
  
  
• 4. Pioneer Project - UgandaRunning from 2009 to 2013, the Pioneer Project was designed to reduce malaria related morbidity and mortality in four districts in mid-Western Uganda, as well as gain a deeper understanding of the most effective approaches in achieving this objective. The project focused on supporting systemic malaria control by increasing both supply and demand for malaria control tools, such as long lasting insecticide treated net (LLIN) and diagnostic-based treatment, in the region. In order to increase the demand as well as use for malaria control tools, the project included behaviour change communication (BCC) activities, which included radio and community-based activities, that sought to increase families' knowledge about malaria prevention, and encourage them to act on this knowledge. Pioneer was implemented by the Malaria Consortium Uganda and funded by Comic Relief UK.
  
  

• 5. Learning Brief: Successful roll out of RDTs in Uganda [2012]This learning brief shares Malaria ConsortiumÂ’s lessons learned over three years of implementation and research on scaling up the use of Rapid Diagnostic Tests (RDTs) for malaria, at community and health facility level. It contains recommendations for stakeholders to ensure the successful roll-out of RDTs in Uganda. One of the observations is that behaviour change communication campaigns are necessary when moving to diagnosis-based treatment so that community members can understand and accept changing practices in case management.
  
  
• 6. Case Study: Essential Malaria Actions in Ethiopia [December, 2012]By Thaddeus Pennas and Shoa GirmaThis report shares the experience and lessons learned from C-Change initiatives in Ethiopia designed to address and reduce malaria morbidity and mortality by scaling up coverage of proven malaria prevention and control interventions. This includes LLIN, indoor residual spraying (IRS) in households, and improved case management. As stated in the report, C-Change's goal in Ethiopia is to integrate mass media, interpersonal communication, and community engagement to help empower Ethiopian families to take preventive and treatment-seeking actions related to malaria and antenatal care/maternal, newborn, and child health, so that families' health status is improved.
  
  
• 7. Building National Capacity for Universal Coverage: Malaria Control in Nigeria [January, 2013]By Sue GeorgeThis learning paper shares the experience of the Support to National Malaria Program (SuNMaP) in Nigeria, which focused on improving the capacity of the Nigerian government to lead the fight against malaria, strengthening public-private partnerships, and reaching the economically poor and vulnerable with interventions such as LLINs. According to the learning paper, while capacity building has been consolidated in the states where SuNMaP works, there is plenty that remains to be done. Capacity building is considered crucial to all six of the core elements, or outputs, that make up the SuNMaP programme: capacity building; harmonisation; prevention of malaria; treatment of malaria; awareness and demand creation; and operations research.
  
  
• 8. Multisectoral Action Framework for Malaria [2013]By Dr Erik BlasThis publication outlines a framework for re-structuring the way countries address malaria. It presents a menu of concrete, implementable processes and actions to transform malaria responses from being a concern of the health sector only, towards a coordinated multi-pronged effort that harnesses expertise across a range of sectors and institutions. It is intended as a guide for policymakers and practitioners and a stimulus for innovation. According to the publication, bed nets and better medicine are essential for countering malaria, but alone they are not enough. A development approach to malaria that harnesses multiple sectors is needed.
  
  

• The Soul Beat 238 - Social and Behaviour Change Communication and Health in Africa
• The Soul Beat 219 - Malaria and Communication in Africa