Summary
All STH treatment and control activities are coordinated by a consortium of partners and government ministries called the Child Health Technical Working Group. The Working Group ensures harmonization of all member activities by coordinating child health activities. This group includes representation of stakeholders such as Ministry of Education, which includes deworming as part of it School Health and Nutrition Program, and National Food and Nutrition Commission of the Ministry of Health, which is responsible for coordinating and overseeing the distribution of mebendazole via national Child Health Weeks.
In collaboration with the consortium, Children Without Worms secured a grant of $200,000.00 from the Izumi Foundation to support: the training of teachers and community health workers to distribute mebendazole; the development and distribution of information, education, and communication materials; and the implementation of monitoring and evaluation activities. In addition, Children Without Worms provided a grant to implement a baseline survey to identify areas of high disease burden in areas of the country not previously surveyed and assess the knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding transmission, treatment and prevention of STH infections. This grant was supplemented by funds from UNICEF and lab supplies from the WHO.