PMI VectorLink Ethiopia

Objectives

The project’s primary objective is to reach a minimum coverage of 85% of the structures found in each district by implementing high-quality IRS operations. The project will implement World Health Organization (WHO) and PMI guidelines on prevention of COVID-19 before, during and after implementation of IRS to ensure the safest possible conditions for the implementing teams and the beneficiaries.

In addition to spraying, the project will carry out the following activities:

• Build capacity at the district, and local/community levels to conduct IRS, including planning, implementation, environmental compliance and monitoring and evaluation (M&E).
• Train spray personnel with a focus on supervision, spray techniques, and IRS data quality.
• Mainstream gender equality by increasing the number of women participating in the various project activities in 2022 compared to 2021.
• Carry out geographical reconnaissance and logistics assessments in selected PMI-supported IRS and LSM districts, and arrange all procurement, shipping, and storage of IRS commodities.
• Conduct community mobilization activities as safely as possible following PMI VectorLink COVID-19 mitigation protocols and in collaboration with stakeholders to raise awareness of IRS and to encourage beneficiary and stakeholder ownership.
• Conduct insecticide resistance tests on three insecticides (primiphos-methyl CS, clothianidin and chlorfenapyr), wall bioassays and vector density monitoring and behavioral studies in nine districts.
• Conduct Anopheles stephensi larval surveys in rural and urban sites to map the extent of its geographical distribution.
• Evaluation of the larvicidal activities of two larvicides; Sumilarv 0.5G and Vectobac WG against larvae of stephensi in three towns.
• Support five towns to implement larval source management (LSM) particularly larviciding for the control of stephensi and conduct entomological monitoring. LSM will be implemented using community-based approaches.
• Expand and conduct community-based entomological surveillance in nine districts for arabiensis and eight towns for An. stephensi.
• Deploy mobile data collection for select entomological data.
• Conduct regular M&E of project activities to ensure alignment with set targets and objectives.
• Expand community-based IRS (CB-IRS) model implementation to Benishangul-Gumuz in addition to Amhara and Oromia regional states.
• Promote cost-efficiency options in the implementation of IRS activities by moving additional districts implementing DB-IRS model to CB-IRS model.
• Build entomological monitoring capacity of universities and research institutions.