Building Interest
Once you have identified leaders and potential partners, how do you inspire them to participate in your organization’s malaria behavior change activities? Some tips for engaging new partners are (from LSP Participatory Systems Analysis Guide , part 3):
- Invite the collaborators to participate in a discussion of how malaria is affecting their community. Ask them to contribute their ideas and suggestions. Engage with them using a language they understand and show them clearly the possible benefits of participating.
- Get to know the collaborators well and build trust with them. Understand their current situation (needs, potential, fears, expectations), history (how and why they got to where they are), and visions of the future (what is likely to happen without the project and thanks to it?).
- How to Conduct a Stakeholder Workshop is a useful tool for building interest.
Advocacy Examples:
- Zero Malaria Starts with Me is an advocacy campaign from the Roll Back Malaria Partnership.
- As part of the Zero Malaria Starts with Me campaign, several countries have started their own End Malaria Councils and End Malaria Funds , which consist of senior business and government leaders across all sectors to advocate for malaria resources and troubleshoot local issues in malaria control.
Key Annual Opportunities for Advocacy Activities:
- World Malaria Day : Annually on April 25
- World Mosquito Day : Annually on August 20
- SADC Malaria Day : Annually on November 6
