Chad ranks 190th in the Human Development Indexes among 191 countries. The Human Development Index measures three dimensions: life expectancy, education and per capita income.
Diarrhoea, lower respiratory, HIV/AIDS and malaria represent the greatest burden of disease below five-years of age. In the southern, more tropical and forested areas of Chad, malaria is a major killer.
With UNICEF and Swiss Cooperation support, MENTOR initiated a community-based project in 50 remote villages in southern Chad in Nya Pende and Monts de Lam prefectures. It is estimated that MENTOR reached nearly 50,000 people through a network of trained and equipped local Community Health Workers (CHWs). They were able to provide first line treatment to simple malaria and diarrhoea cases and to support the referral of severe cases to the nearest health facility.
CHWs are the frontline response to tackle the isolation and lack of access that local and refugee populations face, particularly in rainy season where most villages become totally isolated. It is also during this period that mosquito breeding sites increase, intensifying malaria transmission in the region. MENTOR has implemented a fully equipped network of Community Health Workers able to quickly test, diagnose and treat malaria, and to screen for and refer other patients suffering diseases or conditions such as diarrhoea, pneumonia and malnutrition.
