Salima, Malawi, 6 - 8 March 2024. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Regional Office for Southern Africa (ROSAF) facilitated a three-day strategic and groundbreaking capacity-building training on evidence-based harm reduction in Salima, Malawi—the first of its kind in the country. The objective of the training was to enhance the capacity of key stakeholders to effectively establish and upscale harm reduction interventions in Malawi.
The training was attended by members of the Malawi National Steering Committee on Harm Reduction Services for people who use and inject drugs, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and civil society organizations working with People Who use Drugs (PWUD) issues in the country. This training was a valuable investment to expand the knowledge base and enhance the skills of the National Steering Committee on harm reduction, including innovative intervention strategies for injecting drug users and people living with HIV and using drugs. The training was conducted by two experts in harm reduction, Andrew Scheibe, UNODC Consultant and Gunasekaran Rengaswamy, UNODC Regional Adviser, HIV/AIDS Prevention and Care - Southern Africa.
The training was facilitated in collaboration with the National AIDS Commission (NAC) and the Ministry of Health who are at the frontline of Malawi’s national response to address HIV among people who use/inject drugs. During the opening session of the training, Doctor Micheal Udedi, who represented the Ministry of Health, stated: “internationally, there is a paradigm shift from the war on drugs to humane, primary health care and harm reduction approaches, and Malawi is already embracing this paradigm shift as we can also see by this training.”
During the last two years, Malawi embarked on revising drug legislation and policies and through this, are making significant progress in making evidence-based harm reduction strategies reasonably available in the country.
Training delegates and stakeholders agreed that the acceleration of harm reduction for drug use disorders is possible in Malawi. The country has the ability to make significant strides forward as observed in achieving 95 95 95 HIV targets ahead of the deadline in December 2025. This achievement is remarkable for Malawi as a country and creates a favorable foundation to accelerate and upscale harm reduction services.
National AIDS Commission Chief Executive Officer, Doctor Beatrice Matanje stated that stakeholders together with the expert technical support from International Agencies such as UNODC, must work with precise prevention, and prioritize key populations such as children, women, the LGBTQI+ community, people in prisons and men having sex with men.
The training content consisted of theoretical work, an online platform for interaction between training delegates and facilitators, small and big group discussions. Through active engagement, training delegates obtained a rich understanding of harm reduction and best practices from regional and international experiences.
Next steps will include further collaboration between UNODC, National AIDS Commission, Ministry of Health and other stakeholders to implement sustainable comprehensive harm reduction services in Malawi. The National AIDS Commission will also engage in further capacity building sessions together with UNODC and other key partners. This training was a valuable seed that was sown in improving the health and wellbeing of people who use drugs and who inject drugs in Malawi and was echoed in the words of many of the training delegates.
As one delegate aptly expressed, this training marks not just an event but a beacon of hope for the health and well-being of individuals navigating the complexities of drug use in Malawi. With determination and collective action, Malawi is forging a path towards a future where harm reduction is not just a concept but a lived reality for all.
