Ivermectin Proposal 2025

Expanding Access to Ivermectin in Remote Sierra Leone

The Health Challenge In remote rural districts of Sierra Leone, a common skin infection can turn into a lifelong burden. For families who live far from health facilities, chronic itching, painful skin sores, and the gradual loss of sight caused by onchocerciasis (river blindness) are everyday realities.

Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) like onchocerciasis, scabies, and lymphatic filariasis, remain widespread in Sierra Leone, especially in Kenema, Bo, and Pujehun districts. These diseases lead to ongoing discomfort, social stigma, missed school days, and economic struggles. Despite some progress, access to essential medicines is still limited. Communities are often hours away from clinics, outreach efforts lack resources, and stockouts happen frequently. The problem is not a lack of knowledge – we have proven tools for treatment – but poverty and fragile health systems leave rural families unprotected.

MAP’s Strategic Response MAP, in collaboration with District Health Management Teams (DHMTs) and local partners, will launch a 6-month ivermectin campaign targeting over 25 underserved catchment areas across Kenema, Bo, and Pujehun.

Ivermectin is a safe, proven, and affordable medication that improves community health by treating onchocerciasis, controlling scabies at the community level, and helping reduce lymphatic filariasis transmission. By combining donated ivermectin with mobile outreach teams, MAP will deliver treatment directly to communities where people are suffering.

MAP currently has a supply of ivermectin that will allow the program to treat thousands of people across more than 25 communities.

Sierra Leone

Activities Include • Training mobile teams on World Health Organization (WHO) Mass Drug Administration (MDA) protocols and safety monitoring.

• Community awareness through radio, schools, and local leaders.

• Directly observed treatment with height-based dosing.

• Basic skin assessments, lymphoedema self-care education, and referrals for complex cases.

• Baseline and post-MDA evaluations to measure impact.

This model aligns with Sierra Leone’s national NTD roadmap and WHO 2030 targets.

Key Impact Metrics MAP currently has a supply of ivermectin that will allow the program to treat thousands of people across more than 25 communities.

With the current stock, we can reach about 14,000 to 18,000 individuals, depending on each community’s disease priorities. An estimated 137,500 additional individuals will benefit indirectly through reduced transmission, improved health-seeking behaviors, and strengthened community health systems. With additional resupply, the program can expand to serve more people once these established protocols are in place.

Other Key Indicators Include: • Achieve at least 80 percent treatment coverage in targeted catchments, verified through post-campaign coverage surveys.

• Conduct baseline and follow-up community surveys to evaluate impact and guide future expansion.

• Produce fully trained mobile outreach teams and integrated safety reporting systems within district health structures.

MEDICINE FOR ALL PEOPLE

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INT’L

How You Can Help To ensure the safe and high-quality delivery of donated medicine, MAP requests $50,000 in funding.

This support will enable community mobilization, training, transportation, logistics for mobile outreach, and monitoring and evaluation to guarantee ivermectin reaches the most underserved households safely and efficiently. Your contribution will help close the last-mile medicine access gap for thousands of families, protecting both children and adults from preventable diseases and their lifelong effects.

Why Partner with MAP For over 70 years, MAP has delivered donated medicine, health supplies and medical devices to communities in greatest need. Our logistics capabilities, technical expertise, and trusted partnerships with national and district health authorities enable cost-effective, locally owned programs that are accountable and scalable.

By supporting this initiative, you will help protect children and adults from preventable diseases, restore dignity, and strengthen community health systems in one of the world’s poorest countries.

Investment Opportunity:

$50K

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