A baby receives her first antimalarial treatment of the season

PROJECT BRIEF
Seasonal malaria chemoprevention, Katsina
The project aims to improve child health in Katsina state through increased access toseasonal malaria chemoprevention using community-based delivery systems, andassessing its feasibility for scale up within the health system

Project outline
Malaria Consortium is implementing andassessing the feasibility of a communitybased seasonal malaria chemoprevention(SMC) project in Katsina state, northern
Nigeria, with funding from the Bill &Melinda Gates Foundation. Following
new World Health Organisation policyrecommendations on SMC, this project
administers full antimalarial treatments
during the malaria season in areas withhighly seasonal malaria transmission, toprevent illness among children under five.
Malaria is still a serious public healthconcern in Nigeria, with fevers presumed
to be malaria accounting for 60 percent ofoutpatient visits to health facilities, 30 percent
of childhood deaths, 25 percent of deaths inchildren under one year and 11 percent ofmaternal deaths. In northern Nigeria, wheremalaria transmission is highly seasonal,
malaria prevalence is also comparatively
higher than other areas during the rainyseasons. The implementation of SMC in

Katsina is specifically intended to reduce
mortality in children under five living in areas
with seasonal malaria, and strengthen healthsystems at the state and national levels.
Malaria Consortium has taken a uniqueapproach to the programme by ensuring acomprehensive collaboration with healthauthorities at all levels and the community.
SMC is delivered by community care givers,
who received appropriate training before
the intervention begins and are supervisedby the appropriate staff within the healthsystem. Before a method of delivery ischosen, local communities are consulted
on the most acceptable method of delivery.
The variety of choices by communities will
help reveal what methods are most effective
and able to be scaled up.
Since the SMC programme’s launch at
the start of the malaria season in July 2013,
over 2,800 healthcare staff, trainers andsupervisors have received training to roll out
the intervention. Quality, locally appropriate

Country
NigeriaDonor
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Length of project
2012–2014 (33 months)
Partners
National Malaria Control
Programme, Nigeria
State Malaria ControlProgramme, Katsina

materials have also been produced to assist
with the training and supervision of healthfacility workers, trainers, community healthworkers and families in the communities,
as well as transient families. This included
addressing issues of translation and illiteracy.
Besides improving child health, Malaria
Consortium’s evaluation of SMC delivery will
explore the feasibility, acceptability and costsof community-based SMC. The experienceand outcomes of this project will informthe development of guidelines, ongoing
implementation and future state andnational plans for SMC scale up in Nigeria.

feasibility, community acceptability,effectiveness and cost»» To launch and execute SMC delivery
according to the selected delivery
system and collect data on process
indicators and costs»» To evaluate community acceptability,
costs and effectiveness of thedelivery system for SMC»» To inform future national andstate plans for SMC continuation/
scale up by disseminating findings
and sharing experiences with key
stakeholders

Project aims

The project also has a number ofcritical milestones:

Working with the Katsina state government,
implementation of this project spans 33months.
The project’s objectives are:»» To design, in consultation with key
local stakeholders, an appropriate
community-based delivery system
for SMC in Katsina state basedon formative research, which
will review aspects relating to»» Final design of the SMC delivery
system for evaluation agreed by key
stakeholders»» 85 percent of children targeted
receive all courses of SMC in thesecond round»» A detailed protocol for thecase control study to measureeffectiveness of SMC treatment
courses»» A final assessment report producedon feasibility, effectiveness,acceptability and cost, as well asrecommendations for future designand continuation/scale up»» Participation by key stakeholders ina state level event to disseminate
results of the assessment»» Recommendations with regards
to continuation or scale up of SMC
delivery system agreed»» Commitments to continuation andscale up secured (depending on
positive outcome of the assessment)This project has a direct impact upon
the following:

99 Malaria control
99 Health systems strengthening
99 Monitoring and evaluation
99 Support for at-risk populations

The antimalarial tablet is prepared as a suspension

Malaria Consortium
Development House 56-64 Leonard Street, London EC2A 4LT, United Kingdom
info@malariaconsortium.org / www.malariaconsortium.org
UK Registered Charity No: 1099776

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