When Tostan and Project Muso's participatory education program launched in January, we expected to have about 700 participants in 14 centers.  At the conclusion of the first session, called Kobi 1, in June, there were over 1200 participants that had regularly attended classes.  These men, women, and adolescents celebrated the end of Kobi 1 by performing skits based on themes such as democracy and the right to an education.  In addition, the 14 Community Management Committees formed in March have already shown impressive results - organizing community clean-up days, making sure all children have birth certificates, and mobilizing work crews to improve Yirimadjo's main market road.  While classes will be on hold during the rainy season, the CMCs have created action plans that include activities such as planting trees and improving safety and security in their communities. 

In August Project Muso hosted 10 Faiths Act Fellows from the Tony Blair Faith Foundation and the Interfaith Youth Core.  The Fellows spent 3 weeks in Mali learning about malaria, global health inequalities, and Project Muso's work.  Since then, the Fellows have been spreading the word about Project Muso and raising funds for our Community-Based Malaria Program.  Earlier this week Fellows from Toronto held a 12-hour bake-a-thon that raised $4,000 for Project Muso. See the full story here:http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/793642--baking-for-bednets-to-combat-malaria-in-africa

Last week, Project Muso was invited to participate in a special consultation of President Obama’s Global Health Initiative. Project Muso Co-Executive Director Jessica Beckerman traveled to Washington, DC to participate in the consultation at USAID headquarters.

Project Muso is honored to be selected as a Semi-Finalist in Ashoka's Young Champions of Maternal Health Program.  This is a global competition to recognize innovative solutions to transform the maternal health field, and a great way for us to get the word out about our Community-Based Malaria Program.  For the next month, our entry will appear on the Changemaker website, where the public can read about our project and leave comments.  A panel of judges will simultaneously review the entries and choose a group of finalists.  Then, from April 28-May 12, the Changemakers community will vote for their 3 favorite organizations.  Here's how you can help us rally support in the next month:

At the end of February Project Muso’s Community Based Malaria Program held its first monthly Malaria Awareness and Outreach Day in Yirimadjo.  Over a hundred women gathered from three zones with their Community Health Worker and Project Muso’s Malaria Program Coordinators to talk about malaria: Its signs and symptoms, prevention, treatment and ways each community member can help fight malaria.  The outreach reinforced the project’s goals and efforts and gave community members an opportu

With classes up and running in 14 centers throughout Yirimadjo, Project Muso’s education team will now begin social mobilization trainings for Community Management Committees from each of those 14 communities. The committees, each composed of 17 community members, will be responsible for supporting their center and facilitator, and for launching activities to improve the well-being of everyone in their community.    Each committee will spend four days following a Tostan curriculum based on leadership, social mobilization, and financial and material management. By the end of the training, they should have the skills necessary to maintain a well-functioning organization and to launch high-impact development projects. Subcommittees will focus on priority areas such as health, sanitation, clean water, and child protection. By identifying the most pressing problems in their community, developing solutions, and attaining the resources necessary to carry out activities, the Community Management Committees will serve as a model for community-based development.  

Thursday afternoon Molly Melching, the Executive Director and founder of Project Muso’s partner Tostan, visited Yirimadjo to meet with Project Muso team members and to observe one of our newly-opened participatory education classes. Tostan is working in Mali for the first time, with classes launching in Koulikoro and Yirimadjo just two weeks ago. Ms. Melching, Tostan staff from Senegal and Mali, and Project Muso staff and volunteers all sat in on a class held in Bakorobabougou, on the edge of Yirimadjo. 

Last weekend water faucets around Yirimadjo sprung to life as the community was connected to Mali’s national water system for the first time. Project Muso’s Community Action Committee, founded in 2005, began petitioning the government for access to clean water in 2007 after a household needs survey revealed that hundreds of families perceived this as the most crucial step to local development. The committee organized meetings, a petition, and a march to the mayor’s office. In response, the government began to lay piping in 2008, and water arrived just a few days ago. As people all over Yirimadjo flocked to the faucets with buckets and water containers, even the children knew this was an important moment. “The well water we had before was dirty, but now we have clean water to drink,” said an 8-year old girl watching the excitement from nearby.

After months of preparation, Project Muso and Tostan launched their new participatory education program last week at 14 centers throughout Yirimadjo. Hundreds of community members attended the various openings, and a strong presence of community leaders showed widespread support and enthusiasm for the program. The new facilitators presented their first lesson, which included an activity involving Malian proverbs, an introduction to Tostan, and the establishment of rules and norms for the class. The atmosphere was one of excitement: there was no shortage of laughter, open conversation, and dancing. It is clear that these classes are poised to have a significant impact on the lives of many people in Yirimadjo.

In August, several members of Project Muso’s team sat down with the visiting Tony Blair Faith Acts Fellows to discuss the realities of malaria in Mali. They shared their thoughts on why their work is important to them, why Project Muso’s work is so effective, and how malaria can eventually be eradicated. Click "Read More" to view these videos.  

In January Project Muso and Tostan will together open 28 new participatory education classes for over 700 participants in Yirimadjo. In preparation for the launch, Project Muso recently sent 16 men and women to participate in a 23-day facilitator training hosted by Tostan in Koulikoro. Over the course of three weeks, the participants were introduced to Tostan’s human rights-based curriculum. They attended sessions on topics such as democracy, violence against women and children, the right to be protected against all forms of discrimination, and the right to an education

This week, Project Muso’s Community Based Malaria Program is being featured on the BBC World Service. Broadcasting in 32 languages around the world, the BBC World Service reached an average weekly listenership of 183 million people in 2007. Project Muso is featured as part of a story on the Tony Blair Faith Foundation, a new foundation that is one of the supporters of Project Muso’s Community Based Malaria Program as a model effort.

Malaria kills one million people each year, most of them children. A child younger than 5 dies from malaria every 42 seconds. The Community Based Malaria Program aims to stop deaths from malaria and strengthen Mali’s primary health care system.

Group Pivot Santé Population recently selected Project Muso’s Community Based Malaria Program as a model program for its best practices exchange program. GPSP is a nationwide Malian coalition of civil society health organizations. It acts as a pivot-point for nationwide action to fight malaria. Conducting interviews in the field with residents of Yirimadjo, GPSP’s team learned about the impact that Project Muso’s malaria program has already made in its first seven months.

Project Muso’s Community Based Malaria Program is featured in a recent report, Malaria: Scoping New Partnerships published by the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs at Georgetown University.