Taking this vision forward, the National Framework for Malaria Elimination (NFME) India, 2016–30 was launched in February 2016 with the aim of phasing out malaria in India by the year 2027.
Client Brief
Godrej Consumer Products (GCPL) is a leading emerging markets company in India. It has a proud legacy built on the strong values of trust, integrity, and respect as part of its over 124-year young Godrej Group.
In 2016, GCPL launched its flagship CSR effort, the Elimination of Vector-Borne Endemic Diseases (EMBED) Project – in synergy with India’s national goal of malaria elimination by 2030. The project was implemented by Family Health India in collaboration with local NGO partners and the Health Department of the Government of Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh.
GCPL’s EMBED programme aims to improve knowledge, health-seeking behaviour, and community action for the prevention, treatment, and control of Malaria and Dengue at the household and community level by collaborating with various state government(s). Sattva Consulting conducted an Impact Assessment study of the EMBED programme to prove a sustained change in behaviour and attitudes at both the community and the government level after 1.5 years of its completion and exit from the intervention villages in Madhya Pradesh. The study also focused on assessing the improvement in knowledge on the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of malaria during the programme duration. In addition, the sustainability of the intervention and/or any changes as a result of COVID-19 was also accessed as part of the study, and an SROI value was calculated.
Sattva’s Approach
The impact assessment study used frameworks that included evaluation criteria developed by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD) Development Assistance Committee (DAC). The six evaluation indicators, namely, relevance, coherence, efficiency, effectiveness, impact, and sustainability were contextualised and adopted in the study.
To calculate the Social Return on Investment (SROI) for the intervention, Sattva used a framework inspired by Social Value UK and followed a four-step process; (i) identification of stakeholders, (ii) Outcome mapping, (iii) Evidencing, and valuing outcomes, and (iv) SROI calculation.
Beneficiary Profile
Sattva undertook a descriptive cross-sectional study with a mixed-methods approach – consisting of quantitative and qualitative data collection methods. 1744 household surveys were conducted and 73 In-depth Interviews/Focus Group Discussions were conducted with the Community, Healthcare workers, and Implementation partners to gather relevant data for the study.
Data was collected from 4 districts of Madhya Pradesh, namely Shivpuri, Sheopur, Alirajpur, and Jhabua. The villages in these districts were categorised into intensive and non-intensive villages on the basis of the Annual Parasite Index in 2016-17, during the time of implementation of the programme. 10 of each kind of these villages were chosen for the study.
The Methodology
The study was divided into three phases. During the first phase, the design of the study was identified. The Logical Framework Approach was created to improve the understanding of the project and quantitative and qualitative data collection tools were created to support the data collection phase of the study.
A team of 22 data collectors were trained and sent to 40 villages across the 4 districts of Madhya Pradesh. This phase was completed in a span of two weeks before the project moved to the third and final phase which entailed data synthesis and documentation.
The collected data was thoroughly cleaned and analysed to generate valuable insights.
Key Takeaways
Some of the key insights from the project are as follows:
- Successful collaboration between Godrej and the MP government – led to an 89% decline in malaria cases in the last 5 years. The programme goal of 80% of intervention villages becoming malaria-free in 4 out of 4 districts of Madhya Pradesh was achieved.
- Implementation of the EMBED programme and efforts of ASHA/ANM has led to an increase in the awareness of the term malaria (86%), the spread of the disease (97%), its symptoms (98%), and the frequency of testing (70%) among the respondents. The outcome of this is a rise in the frequency of testing, timely treatment, and faster recovery.
- COVID-19 had an effect on the testing and treatment of malaria potentially increasing the number of undetected cases.
- For every 1 rupee invested in the EMBED programme in the four districts of Madhya Pradesh, a social value of INR 12.57 – is generated.
Project Deliverables
A comprehensive impact assessment and SROI report was shared with the GCPL team. A summary of the same has been published on their website and can be found here.
Sattva’s Impact
Sattva’s impact assessment supported GCPL in strengthening its programme. GCPL’s EMBED programme has been successful in creating a scalable model that can help high-burden villages of India achieve the goal of malaria elimination by 2030. Madhya Pradesh has been recently declared a category 1 state (from category 3 in 2015) and the EMBED team has been presented with a certificate of appreciation for the partnership.
Voices from the Project
“The support of EMBED was good. They got together with the Panchayat and observed the situation of malaria in ‘phaliyas’ (clusters in a village) and spread awareness amongst the people there. Overall, they did good work.”
– A Panchayat Member from Alirajpur
“People’s awareness about malaria has definitely increased. BCCFs used to come and conduct home visits to tell people about malaria, and how to keep their houses and surroundings clean…More people have started getting tested for malaria in this village, people also go to doctors when needed.”
– Panchayat Member, Alirajpur
“I have gotten all this information about malaria from EMBED people (BCCF). Earlier there was no one giving us this information.”
– HH member, Jhabua
