Strengthening M&E and surveillance for the fight against malaria

Chiang Mai, Thailand, 28 September 2012 - Despite significant reductions in malaria morbidity and mortality in recent decades, high-risk areas remain in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS). Major advances have been made to reduce the burden of malaria in the region, and it is imperative that this progress is not lost. A key necessity for tracking progress of control and elimination, responding rapidly to outbreaks and avoiding the consequences of spreading drug resistance, is ready access to reliable information. In the GMS, as countries move from malaria control to elimination, the need for improved surveillance and updated monitoring and evaluation (M&E) becomes even more critical.

As one of the lead partners in a collaborative effort to strengthen the capacity of surveillance and M&E teams in the region, Malaria Consortium has supported the delivery of a regional training course to build human resource capacity in this technical area. The training aimed to ensure that National Malaria Control Programmes (NMCPs) in the region have access to the appropriate expertise in surveillance and M&E for malaria control and elimination, including the skills necessary for the implementation of the Regional Malaria Indicator Framework (RMIF), a GMS-specific, M&E framework, developed through the joint efforts of the NMCPs of the six GMS countries with support from regional and international partners including Malaria Consortium.

During the course, held in Chiang Mai, Thailand from the 19-28 September, participants from 10 countries in the GMS and beyond – including Bangladesh, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Lao PDR, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Solomon Islands, and Viet Nam – were trained in M&E and surveillance skills. Trainees will go onto support implementation of NMCPs as well as serve as country focal points for M&E.

The training course, made possible with financial support from the US President’s Malaria Initiative, built on training provided by Malaria Consortium in Lao PDR in 2011. The course was organised in collaboration with ACTMalaria (Asian Collaborative Training for Malaria Network) and the Bureau of Vector Borne Diseases Control, Ministry of Public Health, Thailand. Technical support for the training was provided by Malaria Consortium, the World Health Organisation, Measure Evaluation, and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Malaria Consortium

Malaria Consortium works to reduce the burden of malaria, neglected tropical diseases and other infectious diseases on at-risk populations across Africa and Southeast Asia. To find out more about our work visit our website at www.malariaconsortium.org or email us at [email protected].