By Luis Mahumane, Project Coordinator, PSI Mozambique; Elsa Nhantumbo, Country Lead, The Plus Project, PSI Mozambique; Allya Jussub, Empathy, Insights and Prototype Manager, PSI Mozambique; Malia Skjefte, Technical Advisor, Malaria, PSI; Charlotte Eddis, Director, The Plus Project, PSI
In the heart of Mozambique’s Sofala province lies a remote village where Muzamusse Joaquim Luis and her family live. At just 22 months old, her youngest daughter Elisa is ready to receive her third dose of Sulphadoxine Pyrimethamine (SP), an effective and affordable medicine used to prevent malaria in pregnant women and infants. This intervention, known as Perennial Malaria Chemoprevention (PMC), is offered through the Unitaid-funded Plus Project, led by Population Services International (PSI). PMC is administered to children at routine healthy child consultations alongside vaccinations, vitamin A supplementations, deworming medicine, and micronutrient powders.
Each month, Muzamusse, with Elisa happily on her shoulders, travels several kilometers alongside friends and neighbors on foot to the nearest health facility in Guara Guara. She makes this trek to monitor the health and growth of her daughter.
This unified journey not only provides community and safety for the mothers during their walk but instills a sense of collective commitment for them to return to the facility for each follow-up visit. After walking for four hours, the mothers and their children arrive at Guara Guara health facility for their appointments. Nurse Zuaguma Salomé checks Elisa for PMC eligibility — including any medical conditions that may prevent treatment — before providing her with the third dose of SP. Muzamusse and nurse Salomé discuss returning for the fourth and final dose the following month and the importance of sleeping under a protective bed net at night.
Nurses like Zuaguma Salomé are essential to reaching households throughout the Sofala province, providing mothers like Muzamusse with life-saving knowledge to care for themselves and their families. The dedication of the health facility staff ensures that every step a mother takes towards her child’s well-being is a contribution towards healthier communities.
“I am going home happy because I saw my child receive treatment to prevent malaria.” Muzamusse shared.
Her monthly journey highlights the resilience and determination of mothers striving to safeguard their children’s health from deadly diseases like malaria.
“We choose to protect ourselves against malaria because the hospital is far from our community. We take hygiene seriously and keep the environment clean. We cut long grass and use mosquito nets at night to prevent malaria.”
As the footsteps of mothers like Muzamusse echo through Sofala’s villages, it becomes evident that the impact of the Plus Project extends beyond the individual journeys. It is a collective effort, a ripple effect of unity and education. This International Women’s Day, join us in celebrating the resilience and strength of women like Muzamusse, nurse Salomé, and the countless others who champion health and well-being in their communities.
About the Plus Project:
The Plus Project, funded by Unitaid and led by Population Services International (PSI), plays an important role in the fight against malaria and anemia among children. By integrating PMC with routine vaccinations and vitamin A supplementation visits, the project aims to reduce the malaria burden in endemic countries including Mozambique, Benin, Cameroon, and Côte d’Ivoire. Between March-December 2023, the Plus Project administered over 175,000 doses of SP for PMC throughout Mozambique’s participating health facilities.
For more information about the Plus Project, please contact the project’s Director Charlotte Eddis at [email protected]. Additional resources about the project, including our gender approach, are available on the project website: https://www.psi.org/project/plusproject/.
