Social and behavior change communication
To create awareness and uptake of the intervention, and to obtain high coverage rates for MDA and IRS, numerous social and behavior change communication (SBCC) methods were used, before, during and after implementation. Three initial inception meetings at district level and engagement workshops with key macro-level stakeholders helped obtain buy-in and support for the study. This was followed by village meetings conducted in all 85 villages in the study area prior to study start, (and repeated in selected villages as needed during the study period). Next, separate posters describing both MDA + IRS were created, approved by Ministry of Health, and posted publicly in schools, village meeting sites and other venues. Radio talk shows (5 in total) and radio messages reinforced awareness and disseminated important study information before and throughout the study. Immediately prior to the first round of IRS and MDA, two village health team (VHT) coordinators from each village were equipped with posters and mobilized to deliver door-to-door information on both MDA and IRS to all households in the intervention arms, and before each subsequent round as needed. In addition, a gender-sensitive community advisory board comprised of community leaders was instituted and facilitated to meet (4 times in total), to ensure continued engagement and community ownership for the interventions conducted over the 3-year period, and to discuss community results at the end of the study period.