School Attendance isBolstered by the SchoolNet Program On a Wednesday afternoon the classrooms at Medi English Medium Primary School in Mtwara, Tanzania, would usually be full of activity. However, today they are empty. Instead, outside in the schoolyard, hundreds of students line up eagerly, jostling and laughing with classmates. The teachers are amazed at the crowd – they comment that many of these pupils have not attended school in weeks, in some cases, months.

So, what is it that makes this Wednesday special? Today, the children know that there is an extra incentive to be at school: insecticide treated nets (ITNs). At Medi English Medium Primary School, this is issuing day for the third round of the annual School Net Program (SNP3), a school-based ITN distribution pilot operating in three regions in Tanzania: Lindi, Mtwara, and Ruvuma.

During SNP3, 500,000 ITNs are being distributed to primary school children to protect them from malaria: one of the biggest killers in Tanzania. Working with the Tanzanian government, VectorWorks is implementing this school-based distribution as part of a “Keep-Up” strategy designed to maintain high levels of coverage of ITNs.

In communities across Tanzania, malaria exacts a significant toll, particularly among young children. It is one of the primary reasons for school absenteeism, often leading to failure and dropout. The children recognize the dangers of malaria in their community but, for many of their families, the cost of an ITN is simply too high. It’s for this reason that the ITNs distributed by the School Net Program are so important for thousands of Tanzanian households.

Mohamed Dadi, District Malaria Focal Person for Masasi District in Mtwara, acknowledges the crucial part that the SNP plays in protecting households in his district from malaria: “There are families, which have not been able to purchase nets, but with SNP they now own nets.”

And, as they receive their ITNs, the children gather around, excited to explain in their own words the difference these nets make: “I like my net because I can sleep well and when I sleep well I can learn better.”

Funding Acknowledgement: “This story is made possible by the generous support of the American people through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI) under the terms of USAID/JHU Cooperative Agreement No. AID-OAA-A-14-00057. The contents do not necessarily re�ect the views of USAID/PMI or the United States Government.”

VectorWorks is a �ve-year global project, funded by the President’s Malaria Initiative, that aims to scale up vector control for malaria prevention through improved distribution of insecticide treated nets, optimal roll-out of promising alternative vector control tools, and global policies that are informed by the use of monitoring and evaluation data. We are committed to a future where no one dies from malaria. Visit www.vector-works.org to learn more.

Children at Medi English Medium Primary School in Mtwara, MC line up to receive their ITNs on Issuing Day for SNP3.© 2015 Vector Works/Claire Gillum

Written by: Claire GillumContributions from: George Kabulika, Gabrielle Hunter, Mohamed Dadi