Analysis of the Effectiveness of Community-Based Interventions for Climate-Resilient Malaria Control in Busia County, Kenya

Abstract

Background: Malaria continues to be a major global public health threat, affecting countless lives worldwide. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), in 2022, there were an estimated 249 million clinical malaria cases and 608,000 malaria-related deaths. Alarmingly, approximately 95% of these deaths occurred in the African Region. Like many other regions globally, malaria is highly prevalent in Kenya's Lake Region counties, including Busia County. The sustained high cases of Malaria have been associated with constant climatic changes that affect the effectiveness of the implemented interventional measures, highlighting the need to adopt community-based and climate-resilient malaria control strategies. Objective: This study aims to analyze the effectiveness of community-based interventions for climate-resilient malaria control in Busia County, Kenya. Research Methodology: A cross-sectional methodological approach was adopted and data collection was done through questionnaires that targeted 300 respondents from the eight sub-counties of Busia Country. The participants included public health officers, nurses, medical practitioners, Community health workers (CHWs) and other healthcare personnel who participated in malaria control initiatives. 279 of 300 distributed questionnaires, representing a 93% response rate, were returned. The collected quantitive data was analyzed using the R-Studio software. Results: Findings indicated that RDTs and antimalarial treatments((Total effectiveness 100%) and the distribution of long-lasting insecticidal-treated mosquito nets (Total effectiveness 100%) was the most effective community-based and climate-resilient malaria interventions approach for Busia County, followed by malaria vaccines (Total effectiveness 82%) and Indoor residue spraying(IRS) (Total effectiveness 82%). Larval source control and public education campaigns were identified as the least effective climate-resilient interventions compared to the others, with 81.9% and 66.5% of respondents, respectively, indicating their effectiveness in withstanding climate change. Conclusion: The study concluded that the distribution of treated mosquito nets, RDTs and antimalarial treatments were the most effective community-based and climate-resilient malaria intervention approaches for Busia County. It emphasized the need for increased funding to effectively implement these approaches, as malaria control efforts in this rural county heavily rely on government and international funding.