Reduce the Transmission of Malaria
Cobija community members participate in a skit to demonstrate newly acquired knowledge regarding malaria prevention.
Pando is an almost forgotten department of Bolivia. Located in the far north along the border with Brazil, Pando's small population survives on Brazil nut production and small-scale agriculture. Due to poor roads and long distances to other Bolivian cities, Pando's population has historically suffered from high poverty rates and low health indicators.
In 2005, CRS Bolivia began a project in collaboration with the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Malaria and Tuberculosis and the Bolivian Program for the Coordination of Integral Health, implemented locally by Caritas Pando. The project will work with families in three municipalities in Pando: Porvenir, Bella Flor and Puerto Rico. The goal of this project is to develop community organizations, advocacy and vocational skills while constructing new, solid houses that eliminate breeding grounds for mosquitoes, which carry malaria. The project is based on the Bolivian Ministry of Health's philosophy that integral health involves not only the prevention and treatment of diseases, but also an overall improvement in living conditions. The general objective of the project is to carry out housing improvement and construction activities using appropriate technology and local materials to reduce the transmission of malaria in medium- and high-risk municipalities in the department of Pando.
Project strategies include:
- An Information, Education and Communication campaign regarding the detection, consequences, forms of treatment and prevention of endemic diseases (malaria, leishmaniasis) and their implications on work and behavior. This campaign is geared toward families, communities, schools and health centers.
- Integral Housing Improvement both within the house itself and in its immediate surroundings. In zones where housing cannot be improved, new homes will be constructed.
- Development and strengthening of Vector Monitoring Sites. In conjunction with the Departmental Health Service, these community-run sites will establish mechanisms to monitor the emergence of the diseases.
The project expects to benefit 1,250 families over 15 months.
