Introduction and Background: Many countries in sub-Saharan Africa have made significant
progress toward achieving their malaria in pregnancy (MIP) program goals. However, most
countries are still far from achieving the coverage targets set by Roll Back Malaria (RBM)
(80%), and the President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI) (85%) for intermittent preventive treatment
in pregnancy (IPTp), and insecticide-treated bed net (ITN) coverage among pregnant women.
Among malaria-endemic countries in Africa, Senegal is a leader in successfully implementing
interventions to prevent and control MIP. With support from PMI, the Maternal and Child Health
Integrated Program (MCHIP) conducted a case study from December 2009 through March 2010 to
examine MIP implementation in Senegal. The country was selected based on two MIP-related
indicators: IPTp uptake1 and ITN use,2 as well as cultural and geographic considerations. Compared
to other sub-Saharan countries, Senegal is considered “high performing” with respect to MIP
programming and likely to have applied successful strategies or best practices that could potentially
be adapted and replicated in other malaria-endemic countries.
Objectives and Methods: As countries scale up their prevention and control of MIP programs,
there are critical lessons learned, as well as promising implementation practices, that should be
considered, adopted, and applied, based on the contextual needs of each country
(Jhpiego/ACCESS 2008). The purpose of this case study is to gain a better understanding of
MIP programming in Senegal, specifically:
1. Best practices3/strategies that have supported MIP programming success;
2. Existing bottlenecks in MIP program implementation and how these are addressed; and
3. Lessons learned that could inform future MIP programming.
The case study will also contribute to developing a standardized framework for the analysis of
best practices and bottlenecks in MIP implementation.
The methodology used consisted of a desk review of secondary data sources and in-depth
qualitative interviews. The findings were then analyzed according to the MIP Readiness Scale,
a framework developed by Jhpiego and Malaria Action Coalition4 (MAC) partners to determine
a country’s stage of MIP program implementation and guide actions to strengthen MIP control.
The framework examines eight key areas of MIP programming:
• Integration • Capacity Building
• Policy • Community Awareness and Involvement
• Commodities • Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E)
• Quality Assurance • Financing