First Annual Rotary Program of Scale:
Partners for a Malaria Free Zambia (PMFZ)
Malaria is a formidable foe: Responsible for 50% of all infant deaths and 20% of all maternal deaths in Zambia. On March 9th, 2021, Rotary International, World Vision, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced the launch of Rotary’s first Program of Scale, Partners for a Malaria-Free Zambia, a $6 million investment to train, equip and deploy 2500 Community Health Workers in Zambia. Partners for a Malaria-Free Zambia will strengthen the national health system by working closely with local health officials and health facility staff, scaling up Rotary’s successful work in the Copperbelt Province to reduce malaria by 90% in two additional Zambian provinces.
Community Health Workers Trained
Population Served by Community Health Workers
Districts Served
Our Role
Malaria Partners International (MPI) is a Rotarian-led organization advocating for malaria elimination. As an independent 501(c)(3), we have created strong strategic partnerships within Rotary and in the global health community. Our partners include PATH/MACEPA, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, World Vision, Pilgrim Africa, Alliance for Malaria Prevention, Malaria No More, the President’s Malaria Initiative, and the Peace Corps. Since 2009, when MPI was founded, we have facilitated dozens of anti-malaria projects in nine nations and, through that work, have developed strong relationships with leadership at Ministries of Health and national malaria elimination programs throughout Sub-Saharan Africa.
Early in the Programs of Scale process, Malaria Partners International began discussions with two of our key partners, World Vision and the Gates Foundation, about how we might collaborate with Rotary to leverage Rotary’s $2M investment for greater scale and sustainability. Those discussions, which took place over many months, led to a commitment from both partners that they would match Rotary’s investment to create a $6 million program.
Led by the Rotary Club of Federal Way Partners for a Malaria-Free Zambia will relieve over 1.3 million Zambians from the burden of malaria, bringing together Rotary clubs across the U.S. and Zambia to provide community-based malaria education, testing, and treatment. Malaria Partners International is proud to serve in an advisory capacity for Partners for a Malaria Free Zambia, helping unite and coordinate the amazing teams and organizations bringing their all to this project.
Martha Lungu
Position
Executive Director for Malaria Partners Zambia (MPZ): Lungu is based in Zambia and often attends the national End Malaria Council meetings. (The official Rotary seat on the End Malaria Council Foundation belongs to Dr. Fred Kaoma, a member of the MPZ board of directors.) Martha also consults with the President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI), and attends monthly National Malaria Elimination Centre meetings, where she coordinates and collaborates with all other actors in Zambia working on malaria elimination. She can speak to the efforts of Rotary members in the initiative and address on-the-ground work.
Every day I witness firsthand the effects of malaria. This program demonstrates that Rotarians are true partners in our communities and are focused on supporting community health workers to help loosen the grip malaria has on the people of Zambia.
Bill Feldt
Position
Bill is a longterm member of the Rotary Club of Federal Way (Program Sponsor): Feldt is based near Seattle, WA, and can speak to the genesis of this initiative, how the Program has grown since first beginning in 2011; and insights into the people served.
“By empowering community health workers, more people in areas with little to no access to health care will now be reached by trusted members of their communities,” said Bill Feldt, member of the Rotary Club of Federal Way near Seattle, USA, who spearheaded the program in cooperation with other Rotary clubs in Zambia and the U.S. “This proven health care delivery model is effective and financially sustainable, and will bring lasting protection by reducing and eliminating this disease at the local level.”
We can end malaria.
Schedule a Presentation
Our team presents on a wide range of topics to Rotary clubs and District and Zone Conferences. We address the basics of malaria, the details of our grants work, and the fight against malaria in the shadow of COVID-19.
It would be an honor to have one of our board members speak at your next meeting.
Voices of the Program
“This project complements and builds upon the leadership of the Government of Zambia in working to eliminate malaria from the country. We are thrilled to expand on our longstanding partnerships with Rotary and World Vision to advance progress in hard-to-reach communities and to realize the goal of ending malaria for good.”
Rotary’s Programs of Scale is encouraging our members to think big and to work with other organizations to find comprehensive solutions to large-scale issues,” said K.R. “Ravi” Ravindran, Trustee Chair of The Rotary Foundation. “The power of Rotary is much greater when we partner with like-minded organizations. As we’ve learned from our global effort to eradicate polio, if you want to make a significant impact, you need to have partners who are willing to jump in with you.”
“Malaria disproportionately affects our country’s most vulnerable – children under the age of 5 and pregnant women living in rural areas,” explains Malelo Namakobo Ilukena, a technical program manager with World Vision Zambia. “It’s imperative that we do all that we can to protect these children and women from a killer disease that is responsible for as much as 50% of infant mortality and 20% of all maternal deaths. I’m confident that by recruiting and training 2,500 community health workers to diagnose and treat more Zambians, we’ll be able to wage a more effective war against malaria.”
“What I love most about this program is that it leverages the strength of local community health workers,” explains John Hasse, World Vision’s national director in Zambia. “We’ve learned from our experience the importance of bringing healthcare closer to those who need it. By empowering community health workers, more people in areas with little to no access to the health system will be reached by trusted members of their communities. Such an effective, proven and local strategy is exactly what is needed to reduce the dreaded disease of malaria and move us closer to malaria elimination in Zambia.”
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Working toward a malaria-free Zambia is personal
One of the most frustrating things about malaria is the preventable suffering it imposes on families. The death of a child or a parent, the loss of work, or economic stability can be devastating.
Q&A Webinar Transcript: 6-Month Progress Update Partners for a Malaria Free Zambia
Full Q&A transcript
Partners For A Malaria Free Zambia 2021 Progress Review
As we reflect on our wins and challenges for the year ending, we are very proud of what we have achieved this year despite the global challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Fighting Malaria in Zambia During A Pandemic
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