Pioneer Project Description

The Pioneer project aims to reduce both the number of cases of malaria and deaths caused by the disease through support to the Ministry of Health – and the National Malaria Control Programme – at national, district and community levels. Pioneer is being implemented by Malaria Consortium Uganda and funded by Comic Relief UK for four years from 2009 to 2013.

Pioneer operates in five districts in mid-western Uganda: Kiboga, Kyankwanzi, Hoima, Buliisa, and Kibaale.
Through the Pioneer project, 1.2 million people will be protected by malaria prevention measures and have access to life saving information and diagnostic-based treatment.
The project works to support systemic malaria control by increasing both supply and demand for malaria control tools in the region. By simultaneously ensuring the best available tools are accessible to the people who need them the most and increasing their understanding of the importance and effectiveness of these tools, Pioneer empowers families to take positive action for the health of their own households.

Pioneer is working to achieve two major outcomes:

• Ensuring families want to access the best tools: in Uganda, ensuring that families want access to LLINs is a long term process. Radio messages and communication with health workers are an important part of the Pioneer project strategy, but the project focuses on communications at the community level, the key to systemic and long-lasting change. 

• Ensuring families can access the best tools, now and into the future: to ensure sustained access to LLINs and information on malaria prevention, those tools have to be made available at community level and good systems  must be put in place to ensure quality of care and appropriate referral. To achieve this goal requires the cooperation of international donors and suppliers but critical of all is functional health system, especially lower level health facilities, village health teams and outreach services.

How we work
To find out more about how the Pioneer Project is achieving these outcomes and providing life-saving interventions in Western Uganda, click here