Communications and Public Engagement (Comms & PE) Department organised entry meetings to engage different stakeholders as part of the community engagement plan for Sustainable Plastic Attitudes to Benefit Communities and their Environments (SPACES) which is a study that is being conducted in Ndirande township from October 2021.

During the meetings at Mwai Orphanage Centre and at Ndirande Health Centre on the 25 and 26 October 2021 respectively, the SPACES study team shared an overview of the study, its objectives, sampling, and community involvement. The interactions also provided a platform for a consultation to guide on transect walks, plastic waste and vector biology samples collection, and drone mapping.

These meetings targeted community leaders and engaged chiefs, religious leaders, business community representatives, youth, and women groups representatives, and health workers, including Health Surveillance Assistants (HSAs).

Research Assistant for SPACES, Rhosheen Mthawanji expressed satisfaction with the turnout during the meetings and the constructive comments, questions, and suggestions made by the stakeholders who were engaged.

Other engagement activities lined up soon include school visits to share information about the study, involve students in sampling, and demonstrate some of the equipment to be used in the study including drones. SPACES is also currently being featured on Umoyo N’kukambirana radio programme for the month of November 2021 to increase awareness and to get feedback from the Malawians.

The SPACES Study which is collaboratively done by Malawi Liverpool Wellcome (MLW), Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences (MUBAS), and the University of Sterling will mainly focus on the impact of plastic waste on the environment and human health.