In 2019, COVID-19 was first reported in China. It then spread throughout the world like bush fire. It has affected millions of people across the World. Africa was not spared with over 11.4 million reported cases across the African Union (AU) member states as reported by Africa CDC as of May 2022. The fragile health systems are struggling to respond in a broader context of concurrent epidemics of vaccine- preventable diseases, and other infectious diseases, inadequate access to clean water, poor sanitation, population mobility, and susceptibility to social and political unrest during times of crisis. The longer this crisis continues, the more acute the broader socioeconomic effects of the pandemic will be, setting back the hard-won development progress that has been made in Africa.
There was thus an urgent need to find effective ways to reach out to as many people as possible in a short time to share health information, encourage testing, and for contact tracing. Hence the launch of the Partnership to Accelerate COVID-19 Testing (PACT) initiative to accelerate COVID-19 testing which was done by Africa CDC. Key to the initiative is the engagement of CHWs in risk communication and community engagement (RCCE), surveillance activities for early case identification, contact tracing, and facilitating referrals for testing and continuum of care.
Community Health Workers (CHWs) roles are made to benefit the communities in which they serve. They help to bridge the gap between vulnerable populations and access to health care. They also provide inputs to healthcare providers and stakeholders about community health needs, so they are well informed on what services are required, and how best to go about it.
In support of the PACT initiative and the activities led by Africa CDC, Africa Public Health Foundation (APHF) was able to raise $12 Million of which $2.5 million from The Rockefeller Foundation was to expand COVID-19 testing and contact tracing in Africa by deployment of CHWs. This funding has contributed to the training and deployment of 1,571 CHWs as at November 2021 in 5 countries which include Republic of Congo.
One of the implementing partners of this grant is the Red Cross in Republic of Congo. The country has reported over 24,000 cases of COVID-19 as of May 2022 according to data from Africa CDC. Dr. Boteya Lambert, Head of Health and Social Action Office at Red Cross said, “We recorded positive outcomes for the project by using CHWs. We had to train and set up a team to do community-based surveillance in the fight against COVID-19”
The CHWs in the Republic of Congo were able to strengthen the wellness of communities by implementing all measures and doing a follow-up in the various communities to ensure that what the communities learned was being implemented.
Dr. Boteya continued, “We have trained over 700 CHWs and they were all deployed to serve in the 37 health districts in the 12 regions of the Republic of Congo. I can say we managed to reach an estimate of 65% of the population and this would not have been possible without community mobilization by the CHWs”
Gabriel Goma Mahinga, Deputy Chairman in charge of Cooperation and External Relations went on to reiterate the need to have CHWs on the ground, “The CHWs are people well known in their communities. It is easier for them to have a peer-to-peer discussion and have great outcomes than having us talk to them. We have also ensured that all CHWs are well provided with Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) which is a critical component of effective emergency response to COVID-19.”
“We had a big challenge of access to resources and equipment to ensure the CHWs were well prepared and equipped. We are grateful to APHF and Africa CDC for mobilising funds from Rockefeller Foundation and we were able to make positive impact in the communities,” added Dr. Boteya.
At the General Directorate of Health Offices, Dr. Jean Martin Mabiala, Representative of the Ministry of Health and Director of Primary Care who led the technical and implementation of the project remarked, “Before receiving the grants, it was not possible to do contact tracing. The grants have been of great help to us accomplishing success in contact tracing, community mobilization and engagement.”
“We are now focusing on vaccination. We are using CHWs to urge people to get vaccinated and this is also bearing results.”
At the General Directorate of Health Offices, Dr. Jean Martin Mabiala, Representative of the Ministry of Health and Director of Primary Care who led the technical and implementation of the project remarked, “Before receiving the grants, it was not possible to do contact tracing. The grants have been of great help to us accomplishing success in contact tracing, community mobilization and engagement.”
“We are now focusing on vaccination. We are using CHWs to urge people to get vaccinated and this is also bearing results.”
