PUBLIC HEALTH INSTITUTE OF MALAWI

Category: Latest News and Events

  • NAPHS Development, 2025.

    NAPHS Development, 2025.

    NAPHS 2025.

    Lilongwe, Malawi – May 28th, 2025.
    by
    Moses Nyambalo Phiri in collaboration withGrace Choo and Settie Kanyanda.

    On 26th May, a crucial workshop kicked off in Mponera, Dowa district, marking a significant step forward in Malawi’s health security. The Public Health Institute of Malawi (PHIM), with support from the World Bank and the Tackling Deadly Diseases in Africa Program (TDDAP), hosted a fundamental workshop focused on developing the nation’s National Action Plan for Health Security (NAPHS).

    A Unified Approach to Public Health, The NAPHS is a strategic framework that ensures a unified and comprehensive approach to public health, directly aligning with the International Health Regulations (IHR 2005). This current workshop built upon insights gained from a Joint External Evaluation (JEE) conducted in December 2024, which assessed Malawi’s health security across 19 technical areas, including prevention, detection, response, and other hazard management. Dr. Wilfred Chalamira on behalf of the Director for PHIM welcomed the participants and emphasised the importance of the event as it will have overall impact of the nations health.

    Multi-Sectoral Collaboration for “One Health”
    A diverse group of representatives from key government ministries and departments participated in the four-day orientation. Officials from the Ministries of Justice, Agriculture, Natural Resources and Climate Change, Gender, Community Development and Social Welfare, Treasury, and the Malawi Police Service, among others, highlighted the essential multisectoral nature of health security. This wide-ranging engagement directly addresses the identified need to strengthen coordination structures across different sectors at national and sub-national levels to implement a “One Health” framework.

    Deep Dive into Health Security
    On the first day, participants were introduced to the NAPHS processes, tools, and overall context. Dr. Gertrude Chapotera from WHO provided an introduction to the NAPHS, while Dr. Herbert Bakiika from the Infectious Diseases Institute (IDI), Uganda, demonstrated the application of NAPHS development templates. The afternoon was dedicated to the critical task of selecting and identifying priority activities, informed by various assessment reports, including the JEE and COVID-19 reports.
    The JEE from December 2024 praised Malawi’s strengths, such as the establishment of PHIM and the operationalization of Public Health Emergency Operations Centers (PHEOCs). Strong capacities in disease surveillance, laboratory services, and multi-sectoral collaboration were also noted. However, the JEE also pinpointed critical areas needing immediate attention, including strengthening legal and regulatory frameworks, ensuring sustainable financing, and expanding training and capacity-building. This workshop directly aimed to address the recommendation to develop a costed NAPHS to outline national IHR gaps and priorities and facilitate resource mobilization.

    Addressing Climate Change and Prioritizing Actions
    The second day saw participants continue to identify and prioritize activities based on comprehensive assessment reports. A significant session integrated Climate Change and Health into the National Action Plan for Health Security, led by Halcycon from Uganda. This integration acknowledges Malawi’s high vulnerability to climate threats, being ranked 5th on the Global Climate Risk Index (2021) and having faced numerous climate-related disasters in recent years. The majority of the day was spent in group work, prioritizing NAPHS activities by technical area, taking into account recommendations from the JEE. For instance, the need to develop and implement a national multi-sectoral strategic plan for Points of Entry (PoEs) was discussed, and efforts to fast-track the enactment of the Public Health Act were highlighted as crucial for strengthening legal instruments.

    Synergies, Coordination, and Costing
    The third day was primarily dedicated to extensive group work, where participants aligned priority actions to identify synergies, prevent duplication, and efficiently compile detailed NAPHS activities. This is especially relevant given the JEE’s findings on fragmented legal instruments for biosafety and biosecurity and the need for a consolidated inventory of high-consequence pathogens. Strengthening multi-sectoral coordination mechanisms was identified as a key priority to promote effective collaboration across different sectors, including developing and formalizing a One Health platform structure.

    On the final day, participants compiled detailed cost assumptions per technical area for each detailed NAPHS activity. The workshop officially concluded with the submission of completed NAPHS templates to the NAPHS Secretariat. This directly addresses the urgent need for a costed NAPHS to facilitate resource mobilization and ensure various sectors mainstream and leverage their resources to address identified gaps. Looking ahead, strategic actions for “Legal Instruments” include engagement meetings with stakeholders and lobbying parliamentary committees for the enactment of the Public Health Act. Further plans include conducting Infection Prevention and Control (IPC), Vaccination & Risk Communication and Community Engagement (RCCE) trainings, extending training for early warning surveillance functions, and increasing national coverage for electronic laboratory information management systems (LIMS).

    Efforts in Biosafety and Biosecurity will focus on consolidating the inventory of high-consequence pathogens and finalizing legal frameworks, ultimately aiming to strengthen the linkage between public health and security authorities for a rapid multisectoral response to suspected or confirmed biological, chemical, or radiological events.

  • Co-Creation and Leadership Training Workshop.

    Co-Creation and Leadership Training Workshop.

    Co-Creation Workshop

    Lilongwe, Malawi – May 28th, 2025.
    by
    Moses Nyambalo Phiri in collaboration with Andrew Hyeroba and Settie Kanyanda.

    The Public Health Institute of Malawi (PHIM) participated in a three-day leadership and management co-creation workshop, sponsored by the Task Force for Global Health (TFGH) and facilitated by AMP Health who are both partners for PHIM. The workshop ran from 27th to 29th May, 2025, was held at the Eden Estates Hotel in Lilongwe, aimed at charting a path towards actions that will enhance the capacity of PHIM to respond to public health emergencies in a timely manner.

    The leadership and management co-creation workshop was rooted in the premise that effective disease surveillance and response to health emergencies is one of the national public health bedrocks that enables the rapid detection and containment of outbreaks. This was in recognition of the fact that PHIM, in its strategic plan, identified the need to address systemic challenges experienced in coordinating disease surveillance and public health emergencies.

    The TFGH, PHIM and AMP Officers during the workshop.

    Acho Alphonse (Regional Advisor, SONAR Initiative) – Opening Remarks.

    Rhys Johnstone (Director, Learning) – Introduction for the workshop.

    The workshop, convening members of different departments of PHIM, sought to establish shared goals and priorities for the months of June – December 2025, that would enable PHIM fast-track the implementation of programs whose partnership financing was coming to a close by end 2025.

    Surveillance and Lab Participants during the Session
    Surveillance and Lab Participants during the Session
    Engaged group discussions.

    In particular, the Global Fund’s support to PHIM. It also sought to clarify the focus of support required from SONAR and AMP Health in facilitating the achievement of the agreed shared goals and priorities. The workshop included foundational training in leadership, management, governance, and coordination. It also highlighted SONAR’s insights on the progress towards the achievement of PHIM’s goals especially those funded by the Global Fund.

    The workshop was facilitated by a team of experts from AMP Health, including Klara Michal (Senior Learning Expert), Rhys Johnstone (Director, Learning), and Andrew Hyeroba (AMP Health Management Partner for Malawi). They were joined by Task Force for Global Health staff, including Acho Alphonse (Regional Advisor, SONAR Initiative) and Mtisunge Yelewa (Country Lead, SONAR Initiative from PHIM), and Dorice Chimbeleko (Deputy National Lead, SONAR Initiative – Malawi) who provided insights and support in clarifying the status of PHIM in its implementation of Global Fund’s financing for PHIM.

    Mr. Chaponda Limbikani displaying some of the fruits of the session.

    This co-creation workshop identified key actions to fast-track, focusing on training, support supervision and data management. To increase momentum towards achievement of the agreed key actions, it was resolved that the participants would conduct follow-up meetings for progress tracking, as well as seek support from each other, the SONAR team, and the embedded Management Partner for Malawi. Commitment was made by the SONAR team and AMP Health to doing their best in ensuring that the PHIM teams developed the necessary leadership and management skills, tools, and techniques to effectively deliver their programs.

  •  PHIM Gears Up for Inaugural National Public Health Research Dissemination Conference.

     PHIM Gears Up for Inaugural National Public Health Research Dissemination Conference.

    FIRST RDC PREPARATORY MEETING.

    Lilongwe, Malawi – May 22, 2025.
    by
    Moses Nyambalo Phiri in collaboration with Dr. Bernard Mvula , Mr. Hamdan Saidi and Settie Kanyanda.

    The Research Division of the Public Health Institute of Malawi is set to host its first-ever National Public Health Research Dissemination Conference (RDC) in October 2025, a landmark event aimed at showcasing health research findings, fostering collaboration, and promoting the practical application of knowledge to inform policy and practice.

    The conference is a collaborative effort between the Research Division of the Ministry of Health – Public Health Institute of Malawi (MoH-PHIM) and the Clinical Research Education and Management Services (CREAMS), Malawi. The primary objective is to maximize the impact of health research within the nation.

    The National RDC is anticipated to convene a broad and influential spectrum of stakeholders. This includes representatives from diverse local and international organizations, key industries, government ministries, esteemed academic and non-academic institutions, as well as the World Health Organization (WHO) Malawi and the National Commission for Science and Technology (NCST).

    WHO, CREAMS and MoH-Research officers present
    WHO, CREAMS and MoH-Research officers present

    Recognizing the substantial audience expected, the Coordinating Task Force has methodically developed a range of sponsorship packages to facilitate robust resource mobilization for the conference’s comprehensive activities.

    As such, organizations and individuals are invited to support the conference through monetary contributions, provision of technical members for sub-committees, or other forms of resource assistance. Sponsorship packages, ranging from Bronze to Platinum, offer a variety of benefits, including prominent branding, speaking opportunities, complimentary attendance, and the chance to host workshops or roundtables.

    PLATNUM

    Platinum Sponsors will receive a 10-minute promotional speaking slot before a keynote speaker, plus a 30-minute workshop or roundtable slot on a conference-relevant topic. (N.B prices may be revised).

    GOLD

    Gold Sponsors will have a 10-minute promotional speaking slot before a parallel session and an individual 15-minute presentation slot in a concurrent session.(N.B prices may be revised).

    SILVER

    Silver Sponsors are offered a 10-minute promotional speaking slot before a parallel session or an individual 15-minute presentation in a concurrent session. (N.B prices may be revised).

    DR. EVELY CHITSA BANDA

    Dr. Evelyn Chitsa Banda, the esteemed Guest of Honor, encouraged participants to engage in thorough brainstorming and capitalize on all available opportunities. She concluded the event by expressing her gratitude for the dynamic participation, stating, “Your collective efforts and innovative thinking here today are vital steps that will undeniably put Malawi on the map and secure the well-being of our beloved nation.”

    For further information regarding sponsorship or participation, interested parties are encouraged to contact Dr. Bernard Mvula at +265999877398 / bernardmvula@yahoo.com or Dr. Adriano F. Lubanga at +265992744497 / adriano.lubanga@creamsmw.com.