Project Lead(s): S.M. Rafiqul Islam
Issue
Diarrhea is one of the leading causes of childhood mortality globally but progress in reducing deaths has been impressive: from 4.5milion/year in the 1980s to 800,000 in 2012.
With the second highest concentration of under-five deaths, Nigeria is a global priority for new cost-effective interventions.
Solution
This project used an innovative model for prevention of diarrheal deaths with oral rehydration salts (ORS) and zinc that uses faith networks in Abia States, Nigeria, to identify and train a cadre of "ORS moms".
These women serve to deliver behaviour change messages and act as community-based suppliers of ORS and zinc, two products essential in preventing deaths due to diarrhea.
Thirty “ORS moms” were identified and trained in the project.
A user-friendly toolkit guideline, essential for implementation after field testing, was developed to create awareness, and to increase consumption of ORS and zinc at the community level. All components of the toolkit were endorsed by the Ministry of Health in Abia State, which served as a test case for proof-of-concept and potential scalability.
Outcome
The project team found that training and development of the cadre of “ORS Moms” at the community level was feasible and well-received, and will significantly contribute to increased use of ORS and Zinc.
Networking with a faith-based organization, such as the Nigerian Inter-Faith Action Association (NIFAA), and partnering with Ministry of Health and media outlets, such as the radio station of Vision Africa, is seen as necessary to implement, monitor and evaluate the scale-up of ORS and zinc use in the two target states of Abia and Sokoto.
Results of the ongoing project have been detailed at conferences.