With a mission to better the lives of children in communities struggling against malnourishment, water scarcity, disease and many other crises, World Vision International has a global presence spanning multiple continents. Providing a range of services from disaster response to child education, World Vision’s work spans multiple sectors, generating positive impact on a broad range of pertinent global issues. In this interview with GlobalWA, we spotlight their work on curtailing infectious diseases with Senior Technical Advisor, Gagik Karapetyan.

While partnering with The Global Fund, how has World Vision contributed to the reduction, control and elimination of malaria in endemic countries, including the distribution of insecticide-treated bet nets (ITNs) and Community Case Management (iCCM)?

Despite the elimination of malaria in some parts of the world decades ago, it remains a significant public health problem for nearly half of the world’s population. In 2019 alone, there were an estimated 229 million new malaria infections with 409,000 deaths globally— about 95% of which were in 31 countries in Africa. Malaria disproportionately affects the poorest and most marginalized communities, as they are at higher risk and often lack access to effective services. Due to more vulnerable immune systems, children under age 5, pregnant women, and people living with HIV and AIDS are the most susceptible.

World Vision has been partnering with The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (The Global Fund), since their inception, over a decade ago.  Currently, our Global Fund portfolio includes 22 projects in 14 countries and helps support our child well-being goal of “children are protected from infection and disease” as well as SDG 3 “Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages.”

We support malaria vector control interventions such as scaling up the universal distribution insecticide treated nets (ITNs) and Indoor Residual Spraying (IRS). We also contribute to community and health systems, strengthening and empowering communities to work with governments, the private sector, and civil society for Integrated Community Case Management (iCCM) services.

The iCCM promotes a diagnostic and treatment approach to pneumonia, diarrhea, and malaria. We train, support, and supply community health workers (CHWs) to provide timely and effective diagnostics and treatment for sick children in areas without adequate access to case management at health facilities.  World Vision supports iCCM as a proven and effective strategy to ensure community-based services are provided to those that need them the most.

Read the full article about World Vision International by Aneesh Chatterjee at Global Washington.