NTD and community engagement webinar
Date
Tuesday,
28 September 2021
Time
3.00pm (Africa/Nairobi)
As part of the events organised for World Rabies Day 2021, we organised a webinar with Speak Up Africa to discuss how scorecards can enhance community engagement for neglected tropical diseases (NTDs).
What we learnt during the webinar
Neglected tropical diseases affect over 1.5 billion people worldwide, and touch the most vulnerable populations. NTDs are not only a health problem, they also hinder economic growth and productivity and hinder education.
It is critical to involve the community to eliminate neglected tropical diseases. Tools like the scorecards are very helpful to help mobilise the community, but also the use of the media, champions and civil society to raise awareness about these diseases.
Yacine Djibo, Founder and Executive Director, Speak Up Africa
ALMA has also supported 40 countries in developing scorecard management tools to accelerate progress against these diseases. To date, eight countries have developed scorecards specifically for NTDs. These tools are used by ministry of health staff and their partners, at national and sub-national level to track progress, and monitor the implementation of key interventions. The use of the scorecard tool has led to significant action and impact, with countries using real-time data to respond to outbreaks, shortages of staff or commodities and improving quality of care
Joy Phumaphi, Executive Secretary, ALMA
During the event, we shared how countries like the Republic of Congo have used the scorecard management tool to mobilise advocacy, action, resources, and accountability for the fight against NTDs.
We also heard how community engagement through the use of participatory mechanisms like the community scorecard has led to improved quality of care and services in Ethiopia and Ghana.
And how in Guinea, civil society organisations such as the No to NTDs are engaging the community through training and workshops to accelerate the fight against NTDs.
As discussed during the webinar, civil societies play a particularly powerful role when it comes to the fight against NTDs. Learn more about the work some civil society organisations are conducting across West Africa as part of the Civil Society Says “No to NTDs” Network.
New NTD resources on the Scorecard Hub
We also launched new resources on NTD scorecards on our ALMA Scorecard Hub. These resources are designed to help countries understand:
- how the scorecard tool works
- what indicators are commonly used for NTD scorecards
- how they lead to improved management of programmes and galvanise political commitment from leaders.
We have also published an analysis of how the inclusion of an NTD indicator in the ALMA Scorecard has led to galvanized action in the fight to eliminate NTDs in Africa.