The Malaria Awareness and Prevention Campaign was implemented in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria, from October 2025 to February 2026. The Community Impact Grant Project was led by the Rotary Club of Trans Amadi (District 9141) in partnership with the Rotary Club of Port Harcourt Atlantic City and the Rotaract Club of Okuru, and supported by the Rivers State Ministry of Health Vector Control Team and the Rivers State University Teaching Hospital.
Project Need & Rationale
In 2024, Nigeria accounted for approximately 24% of global malaria cases.
Rivers State, one of the 36 states in Nigeria, covers an area of about 10,364 square kilometres, with Port Harcourt as its largest city and a major oil business hub. A report from the National Demographic and Health Survey shows a 41% malaria prevalence rate in Rivers State.
The Borokiri waterfront, one of the riverine communities in the outskirts of the Port Harcourt Local Government area, is highly endemic, with malaria transmission documented year-round. This
Project Objectives
• Reduce the malaria burden among pregnant women, children under five, and other residents through ITN distribution (target: 2,500 beneficiaries).
• Reduce transmission through Indoor Residual Spraying in 500 households (target: 2,500 beneficiaries).
• Eliminate mosquito breeding sites through environmental sanitation and awareness (target: 2,500 beneficiaries).
• Spray 500 sprayable houses across UPE sand-field, Borokiri, Ibimie Polo, Ibadan, and Bishop Johnson Waterside.
• Train 20 spray technicians and community workers to anchor sustainability.
Implementation - Approach & Activities
The campaign was implemented across five riverine waterfront communities of Port Harcourt: Borokiri, Ibimie Polo, the UPE sand-field community, Ibadan Waterside, and Bishop Johnson Waterside. The approach combined community sensitization, ITN distribution, indoor residual spraying, free malaria testing and treatment, and the training of local spray technicians and Village Health Team volunteers. Field activities were carried out in November 2025 and supervised by Rotarians and the Rivers State Ministry of Health Vector Control Team.
Community Engagement and Awareness
Thirty Rotarians from RC Trans Amadi, RC Port Harcourt, RC Atlantic City, and RAC Okuru supported community engagement.
Town criers sensitized approximately 3,000 community residents on the project and malaria prevention. Radio jingles aired on local stations, alongside 1,000 project flyers distributed by ten community youth volunteers.
Clean-up committees were established in three communities and trained on bio-larviciding, environmental sanitation, the application of disused engine oil to standing water, and back-filling of stagnant pools and depressed areas.
After community events, Rotarians conducted door-to-door learning checks with residents using three malaria prevention questions to verify the effectiveness of the awareness work. The malaria prevention campaign billboard was commissioned on December 4, 2025 by PROMAX District Governor Rtn Anthony Woghiren.
Insecticide-Treated Bed Net (ITN) Distribution
An advocacy team, including Rotarians and the Rivers State Ministry of Health malaria control unit, visited each community to brief residents on the campaign, answer questions, and secure participation.
The project distributed 3,200 insecticide-treated nets, reaching 3,000 community residents (20 percent above the 2,500-beneficiary target), with priority given to pregnant women and children under five.
Distribution was paired with hands-on education on correct net use, care, and repair. The 23 trained Village Health Team volunteers reinforced this messaging at household level during the medical outreach, sharing guidance with families on how to protect themselves against mosquito bites.
In December 2025, the community-trained malaria volunteers carried out monitoring and evaluation across the participating communities, documenting ITN use, confirming compliance above 80 percent.
Free Medical Outreach and Community Health Capacity Building
Rotarians, Rotaractors, one doctor, and four laboratory scientists volunteered to lead the free medical malaria outreach. Rapid diagnostic tests were administered to 731 residents (263 male, 474 female), and anti-malarial medication was provided to 550 patients (200 children, 350 adults).
Twenty-three community volunteers were trained on basic malaria prevention and organized into three Village Health Teams of approximately seven members each, supporting awareness, distribution, and post-distribution monitoring.
Indoor Residual Spraying (IRS)
IRS was delivered over a seven-day campaign in November 2025, covering 819 households across the participating waterfronts (64 percent above the 500-household target).
Twenty community-based spray technicians, five additional technicians, and five team leaders were recruited locally, trained, and supervised jointly by Rotary and the Rivers State Ministry of Health Vector Control Team.
Competitive procurement of IRS chemicals at 80 percent of the budgeted cost, alongside 80 percent re-use of PPE from the prior campaign, enabled the expanded coverage.
Project Outcomes
- Direct beneficiaries: 3,000 community residents (target 2,500; +20%), confirmed through ITN distribution. This population also received IRS protection and access to the medical outreach within the participating waterfront communities.
- Indirect beneficiaries: ~5,000 residents across UPE sand-field, Borokiri, Ibimie Polo, Ibadan, Bishop Johnson, and Ibifaka/Krakra Polo
- ITNs distributed: 3,200, reaching 3,000 community residents (target 2,500 beneficiaries; +20%)
- Households sprayed (IRS): 819 (target 500; +64%)
- Residents tested with RDTs: 731 (263 male, 474 female)
- Patients treated with anti-malarials: 550 (200 children, 350 adults)
- Spray workforce trained: 30 (20 technicians, 5 additional technicians, 5 team leaders)
- Community volunteers trained: 23 people
- Rotary engagement: 30 Rotarians from the Rotary Club of Trans Amadi and the Rotary Club of Port Harcourt Atlantic City
Qualitative Outcomes
Community members demonstrated an improved understanding of malaria symptoms and preventative practices. Post-activity learning checks were conducted door-to-door. Residents were asked three malaria knowledge questions: 85% of residents answered one correctly, 75% answered two, and 55% answered all three. Community-led monitoring measured ITN compliance of 80% one month after distribution. Households reported routine use of sand to cover ponds and disused engine oil on standing water, and the participating communities committed to integrating these practices into the state-wide monthly environmental sanitation exercise.
Monitoring, Challenges, and Sustainability
Challenges
Compressed training timelines for community technicians and volunteers; sustained community participation in environmental clean-up beyond the project period; logistics of working across dispersed waterfront communities.
Lessons Learned
- Training of community health workers and spray technicians should run for at least three weeks before field work, with certificates of proficiency on completion.
- A modest monthly stipend would strengthen community ownership of malaria control groups and Village Health Teams.
- Sustained sensitization is needed to frame environmental clean-up as a community responsibility rather than a Rotary activity.
- Continued education on the project action plan is needed to embed sand-filling of ditches, regular environmental clean-up, and consistent ITN use as routine household practice.
Sustainability
The Rotary Club of Trans Amadi and the Rotary Club of Port Harcourt Atlantic City will conduct bi-monthly community visits for six months after project close, working with the Rivers State Ministry of Health Vector Control Team to monitor ITN use, environmental conditions, and malaria trends. The 30-person spray workforce and the 23 trained Village Health Team members remain in place as a community resource, and the clean-up committees have committed to monthly community-led sanitation.