MOZAMBIQUE – The United States Government, through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), has initiated a five-year USAID Malaria Capacity Strengthening (MCAPS) program in Mozambique.
The MCAPS program, a part of the broader U.S. President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI) to eliminate malaria, aims to improve the quality of essential health services for the mosquito-borne infectious disease across the country.
PMI delivers cost-effective, lifesaving malaria interventions and invests in health workers and health systems to accelerate the global fight against this deadly infectious disease.
“USAID is investing more than US$29.9 million in this PMI program over the next five years. The U.S. Government remains committed to supporting the people of Mozambique to combat malaria and other diseases,” reported the U.S. Embassy in Mozambique.
The program, which is scheduled to run from 2022-2027, will contribute to the National Malaria Control Program (NMCP) objective of “testing 100% of suspected malaria cases and treating 100% of confirmed malaria cases, at health facility and community levels.
The five-year initiative comes at a time when Mozambique is one of six countries accounting for more than half of all global malaria cases while the disease accounts for nearly 30% of all deaths in the African nation.
That notwithstanding, Mozambique has made considerable progress toward reducing malaria deaths from 970 in 2018 to 408 in 2021.
Subsequently, the U.S. Embassy disclosed that the MCAPS program will be implemented by public health nonprofit MCD Global Health in the malaria-affected provinces in close partnership with consortium partners.
The specific partners in the program include Mozambique Health Committee, Ariel Foundation, the Foundation for Community Development, Family Health International 360, and the Malaria Consortium.
The consortium will work in close partnership with the Ministry of Health’s (MOH) National Malaria Control Program at the national, provincial, and district levels.
In addition, it will work with MOH health facilities, community health workers, health management committees, and communities to name a few.
“Together, the PMI MCAPS consortium will work with and support health facilities to provide higher-quality malaria health services, improving Mozambicans’ health and well-being, as well,” said the United States Embassy.
The consortium will also support training, coaching, and mentoring of health workers as well as updating national guidelines and policies, and improving systems for how malaria data is collected and used across districts and health facilities in Nampula, Zambézia, and Manica provinces.
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