APRIL 2021 - The Government, UNICEF and RCCE partners were fully activated in supporting the COVID-19 response in mid 2020 when cases reached a peak in Malawi. Though several platforms existed to organize partners conducting risk communication and community engagement (RCCE) work, duplication of efforts and difficulty in mounting a cohesive approach at national and sub-national levels indicated a critical need to strengthen coordination. At the request of the government and the Malawi UN resident coordinator, UNICEF took the lead in strengthening RCCE coordination mechanisms.

UNICEF Malawi C4D, in partnership with the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Information, and with support from ESARO, developed a unique RCCE Mapping Tool & Online dashboard, that both harmonized the RCCE response and linked key epidemiological parameters with RCCE interventions to support cross-cutting, evidence-based advocacy and decision making. ​​​​​​​

A partner mapping was first conducted. The team opted for a user-friendly Kobo questionnaire to gather information on key activities and priorities undertaken in country, and the Ministry of Information and other clusters jointly sent the survey link to partners to respond.

In parallel, the ESAR RCCE collective service worked with UNICEF Malawi Country Office to triangulate the partner mapping data with epidemiological parameters. Parameters include COVID-19 cases, deaths, contract tracing and a proxy for demand for health services: outpatient department (OPD) visits. As the data became available, the dashboard was developed in aggregation with available demographic and geographic information.

While the dashboard is sure to iterate and progress is ongoing, early implications can be seen. “On the coordination side, the dashboard brought renewed energy to partners from COVID fatigue​ to rally around a common agenda,” Mr. Chikumbutso Mtumodzi, Director of Information at the Ministry of Information, said.

The dashboard development brought together the Public Communication Cluster and COVID-19 RCCE Working Group​ and is guiding the National COVID-Secretariat on the status of RCCE​. Building on this, the data triangulation provides an opportunity for evidence-based advocacy, decision-making and tailoring of interventions. “The COVID-19 Secretariat finds the RCCE Dashboard as an important tool for tracking the status of RCCE interventions, we will [engage] all stakeholders to ensure a fresh RCCE mapping survey is carried out soon. A monthly survey would be even more helpful for us,” said Mr. Joseph Dzuwa, Communication Officer at the Secretariat.

Concretely, the dashboard has already been leveraged in these ways. Mapping data collected during the first wave of COVID-19 showed that partners were conducting very little community engagement and social science research. The dashboard provided a platform to guide an evidence-based shift to discuss and invest in engaging communities during both the second wave of COVID-19 and for COVID-19 vaccine rollout. As a result, the COVID-19 secretariat is now emphasizing the meaningful involvement of faith and traditional leaders as key partners for community engagement. The national taskforce on COVID-19 is also now looking at gaps in social science research, putting this on the national agenda.

At local government level, there have been many discussions on how the dashboard could enhance coordination, and to ensure that community engagement and feedback are key components. Based on the gaps identified in the dashboard, the Government of Malawi and UNICEF are introducing the Kulumikiza RCCE model, which emphasizes localized, agile, integrated and community focused approaches driven by real-time data, social science research, and community feedback to achieve sustainable behaviour change in Malawi. The model is embedded in the Local Governance and Decentralization programme and is currently being rolled out in Nsanje and Chikwawa district councils.

Data access is noted as a significant challenge, as data entry and linking data entry with the dashboard visualization is difficult. However, UNICEF Malawi Country Office is working with partners to explore solutions. “We are committed to exploring sustainable solutions to the challenges in linking the dashboard to existing systems at the Ministry of Health,” Dr. Annie Chauma Mwale, Head of Epidemiology and Surveillance at the Ministry, stated.

Looking forward, UNICEF will focus on adapting the dashboard to align to stakeholder interest and needs, supporting the institutionalization and ownership of the dashboard within government, building data capacity at district-level and collecting evidence on effectiveness and utilization of the dashboard.