Background

Malawi has a population of about 20 million, with the vast majority living in rural areas. Many people live more than 8 kilometers from the nearest health facility, which makes accessing timely care difficult. Maternal and child mortality rates remain high, and diseases such as malaria, respiratory infections, and HIV/AIDS continue to be major health challenges.

What Last Mile Health Does

Last Mile Health works with the Ministry of Health in Malawi to strengthen community health systems, particularly in hard-to-reach rural areas. Their efforts focus on:

Digital Health Systems
They support the roll-out of the Integrated Community Health Information System (iCHIS), a digital platform that helps community health workers (CHWs) collect data, make clinical decisions, and provide timely reports. The goal is to improve accuracy and ensure health leaders can respond quickly to community health needs.

Training & Supervision
Community and frontline health workers are trained on both digital tools and essential health topics. They also receive supervision to maintain quality of care and ensure effective use of the iCHIS system.

Government Partnership
Last Mile Health partners directly with Malawi’s Ministry of Health to scale and sustain the national community health program, align with national frameworks, and ensure long-term integration into the health system.

Financing & Policy Support
They work on strengthening the policy environment and advocating for sustainable funding so the community health worker program can continue beyond donor support.

Impact So Far

Over 2,700 community and frontline health workers have been trained and supported.

Nearly 700,000 people are registered in the iCHIS system, giving health leaders real-time access to community health data.

A majority of trained health workers in supported districts have received supervision visits to reinforce skills and quality standards.

Leadership

Dalitso Baloyi serves as the Country Director for Last Mile Health in Malawi, overseeing the organization’s partnership with the government and its strategic direction in the country.

Challenges

Infrastructure: Limited internet connectivity and power supply in rural areas affect the rollout of digital systems.

Sustainable Financing: Long-term funding is needed to keep the program running once donor support declines.

Supervision & Coverage: Ensuring all health workers are adequately supervised and supplied is still a work in progress.

Data Use: Collecting health data is valuable, but it’s equally important that supervisors and decision-makers act on it consistently.

System Integration: Making sure community health initiatives link seamlessly with hospitals, supply chains, and referral systems is essential.