WaterAid contributes to quality assurance and improvement of Covid-19 IEC materials

WaterAid Malawi continues to be actively involved in Covid-19 National Response.

We have contributed to improving the quality of information, education and communication materials as co-chair of Quality Assurance and Quality Improvement Social and Behaviour Change Communication Sub-Committee which is chaired by the Ministry of Health’s Health Education Services (HES). HES is the focal point of all Covid-19 messages in Malawi.

As co-chair of the sub-committee, WaterAid in Malawi is involved in coordinating, vetting and approving of IEC materials from different organisations.

“The sub-committee ensures that the messages meet the specified requirements and standards. Our focus is to review the actual message to ensure that it is speaking to the target audience and that all other specifications such as logos are in place,” said WaterAid Malawi’s Hygiene Behaviour Change Specialist Maria Soko-Mpesi.

The committee  has so far reviewed IEC materials from community radio stations  and organizations such as   Plan International, Girl Effect, Masks4allMalawi, SANE and UNICEF that focused on how Covid-19 is spread, symptoms of Covid-19 and promotion of hygiene behaviours that can prevent the spread of the disease.

Being an important stakeholder in the WASH sector, WaterAid has shared its experience and standards with the sub-committee.

Apart from HES and WaterAid, the other sub-committee members are from Health Communication for Life (HC4L), the members of the academia and other stakeholders in the SBCC and WASH sector who attend by invitation.