World Connect

COVID-19 Neba

Year: 2020

Country: Malawi

Project Status: Funded

Impact Sector: Health

Project Investment: $3,472.11

Project Launch: 8-5-20

COVID-19 Neba is a locally designed app that will share accurate, up to date information on COVID-19 from the World Health Organization, Center for Disease Control and Local Ministry of Health. The app will translate information about the spread of the virus and prevention measures into local languages and will provide text, audio, and visual materials to support people living with hearing and visual impairments. The community organization, STATUS, will also introduce an online mask-wearing competition to promote the use of masks among Malawians. Over 10,000 Malawians are targetted to benefit from the app and subsequent social media, radio, and television campaigns.

Project Update: 3-29-21

Eight months after recieving the World Connect COVID-19 response grant, community organization STATUS and Mandela Washington Fellow Alfred Kankuzi have developed and launched the COVID-19 Neba mobile app and web app with content in English and three local languages (Chichewa, Chitumbuka, and Chitonga). The app has downloadable content as well as audio and visual content for people with limited literacy and hearing or visual impairments. To date, 80 people with visual and hearing impairments have accessed the COVID-19 prevention information through the app. Throughout the country, 30,000 people are actively using the mobile and web apps. The project has also conducted offline COVID-19 campaigns and made offline videos and audios to deliver COVID-19 related information reaching out to 10,000 people in the process. Additionally, using the S/he Project previously funded by World Connect, STATUS has sewn and donated 5,000 masks to community members aiding in their ability to protect themselves from the coronavirus.