Adapting seasonal malaria chemoprevention in the context of COVID-19: operational guidance

This document provides operational guidance for countries to safely implement SMC, considering the importance of both lowering malaria-related morbidity and mortality, and ensuring the safety of communities and health workers. The adaptations below are suggested for SMC implementation in areas where COVID-19 transmission is reported or national health authorities consider there is a high risk of community transmission. All planning and SMC activities should be aligned with governments’ COVID-19 response, national strategic decisions to preserve essential health services and to deliver life-saving community outreach interventions.

The document was initially developed by Maria Consortium’s SMC programme to guide contingency planning in areas where the organisation supports SMC delivery. It was expanded and refined by a steering committee comprising representatives from the World Health Organisation (WHO), Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV), President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI), Catholic Relief Services (CRS), Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) and Malaria Consortium. Further invaluable feedback was received from a wide range of SMC stakeholders, including national malaria programmes and donors.

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