Step 5: Define Your Activities

To define your malaria activities, combine your organizational and community values, target audience, strengths and assets, and timeline. Use the worksheet below to:

1. Name the group you have selected as your target audience.
2. Review the toolkit’s Malaria Actions to Promote section. Choose the desired behavior you would like to promote for your target audience.
3. Identify ways your selected behaviors align with your organization’s mission.
4. Know how the behaviors align with your community’s values.
5. Recognize the resources available to support the effort through your organization’s strengths and assets.

Example Activities Worksheet:

Girl Guides Activity Planning

Blank Example Activities Table: Word – (EN | FR | PT )

Blank Example Activities Table: PDF – (EN | FR | PT )

Next, describe the activities you will do in your communities to promote this behavior change. Plan concrete, doable actions that can help ensure your organization can enact the vision you have outlined. Make sure the timing of your activities aligns with malaria transmission in your area and takes into account other malaria activities taking place in your community.

Insert Malaria Opportunities into your Ongoing Activities:

The way you implement your social and behavior change activity will depend on your specific behaviors and target audience. This section has resources for promoting malaria prevention and treatment behaviors through key activities performed by community- and faith-based organizations. You can also adapt these resources for other activities carried out by you and your organization and based on your community’s needs.

Home Visits:

Your organization may already use home visits as a way to connect with your constituents and members of your community. Use these visits as an opportunity to talk with households about key malaria behaviors and support community members in the fight against malaria. For the key points for all of your activities, see the Actions to Promote section. Home visits can:

• Increase knowledge about the malaria parasite, insecticide-treated nets, malaria symptoms, intermittent preventive treatment in pregnancy, testing, and treatment.
• Change perceptions and beliefs and address rumors about malaria.
• Increase demand for insecticide-treated nets, malaria testing, and treatment.
• Improve acceptance and trust between families, communities, and the health system.
• Understand patterns of community behavior and link households to existing resources in the community.

Sermons and Faith-Based Gatherings:

Faith-based leaders and organizations hold unique positions as trusted resources in their communities. Sermons and other religious gatherings can serve as opportunities to provide important information to congregants and community members. For specific religious resources, visit the toolkit section Using Malaria Social and Behavior Change in Your Work.

Work with Schools and Children:

Your organization may also work with schools and children in your ongoing activities or have connections to teachers and educators. School children are a key group that can reduce the transmission of malaria. Children can also spread knowledge and encourage the practice of important malaria prevention and treatment behaviors within their families. Key messages to remember:

• Untreated malaria cases can cause anemia in school children, making it difficult to concentrate and learn. Untreated malaria can lead to children missing school and affect school performance.
• School children and teachers can be key malaria change agents within their households and communities.

Example Activities for Schools and School Children (adapted from Save the Children, Malaria Control in Schools in Mali ):

• Classroom or After School Malaria Education: Sessions with school children can be coordinated with teachers during the school day as part of science or health lessons or after-school activities.
• School Malaria Day: Organize this event to include the entire community, including students performing sketches, poems, songs and health workers or leaders demonstrating malaria prevention and treatment behaviors.
• Youth and Sports Groups, Child Malaria Clubs: If your organization already works with extracurricular groups, this can be a great avenue for malaria education. School groups can also help in spreading the word about malaria prevention and treatment in communities.

Other Group Ideas:

The resources in this toolkit can be adapted to fit the needs of different groups in local communities. Some examples of other groups you may consider working with:

• Women’s groups.
• Microcredit groups.
• Bible study groups.
• Scout Sunday School.
• Unions.
• Madrasas.
• Creches.
• Village Health Committees.

Once you have decided on your activities, use the activity planning sheets below to plan.

Example Activity Planning Sheet:

Girl Guides Net Hanging Activity – Description (who, what, where, when)

Girl Guides will go door to door with hanging tools in their community to see if there are unhung insecticide-treated nets in the house. They will offer to assist in hanging the insecticide-treated nets and speak with the people in the home about why sleeping under insecticide-treated nets every night, all year long is important.

Blank Activity Planning Sheet: Word – (EN | FR | PT )

Blank Activity Planning Sheet: PDF – (EN | FR | PT )

For other guides and materials to adapt for your work, visit the toolkit section: Using Malaria Social and Behavior Change in Your Work: Additional Resources.

Want to Learn More?

Resources – Using Malaria SBC in Your Work