PMI VectorLink Ghana

In Ghana, IRS is a core vector control intervention and a component of the current National Malaria Control Strategy and Ghana Strategic Plan for Malaria Control 2014-2020. PMI support for IRS started in 2008. In the ensuing 12 years, PMI has targeted between five and nine districts in the Northern region (recently divided into three regions: Northern, North East, and Savannah) per year, with the highest number of structures sprayed (383,142 structures) and population protected (941,240 people) in 2012. AngloGold Ashanti Malaria Control Ltd (AGAMal) has been conducting IRS since 2006 in the Obuasi district of the Ashanti region with its own funds. Since 2008, AGAMal has received financial support from the Global Fund to expand its IRS activities to the entire Upper West and three districts in the Upper East regions.

In the last five years of IRS implementation, PMI has targeted between five and nine districts in the Northern region (which, in 2019, was divided into three regions: Northern, North East, and Savannah) per year, with the largest population protected (965,467 people) in 2020. Another large IRS implementer, AngloGold Ashanti Malaria Control Ltd (AGAMal), has been conducting IRS since 2006 in Obuasi district of Ashanti region with its own funds. Since 2008, AGAMal has received financial support from the Global Fund to expand its IRS activities to the entire Upper West and three districts in Upper East regions.

Activities and accomplishments:

• PMI VectorLink Ghana expanded IRS to nine districts up from seven districts in 2018.
• The project contributed to national entomological surveillance through PMI VectorLink implemented insecticide resistance and longitudinal monitoring in eight PMI-supported IRS districts and four national sites, and financially supported National Insecticides Resistance Monitoring Partnership (NIRMOP) through the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR) to collect and report on insecticide resistance data in 30 sites throughout the country.
• PMI VectorLink Ghana strengthened the capacity of staff of the Navrongo Health Research Center (NHRC) to conduct entomological collections at four sites (Krachi East district in Oti region, Sefwi Wiawso district in Western North region, Fanteakwa North district in Eastern region and Asutifi North district in Ahafo region) and transferred the field work to the center in June 2022.
• The project completed a three-year ITN durability study of DawaPlus 2.0 ITNs distributed in Zabzugu and Olyset ITNs distributed in Nanumba South in the June 2018 mass campaign; supported routine distribution of ITNs in 16 regions, the 2021 nationwide mass ITN campaign of 15.3 million nets in 15 regions, and 2020 school based ITN distribution of 1.4 million ITNs to 23,000 schools in 15 regions. The team also implemented social behavior and communication activities between 2020-2022 to recruit and train community health workers and community leaders as ITN use and care champions in Central and Eastern region.

Capacity Building
Insecticide Resistance
Leadership & Governance
Surveillance
Vector Control

Jan 2018 — Jul 2023

Ghana

The PMI VectorLink Project