Since the beginning of 2021, Covid-19 has spread widely in the Comoros, first in Mohéli before reaching Anjouan and Grande Comore. The archipelago had experienced a long respite until the end of 2020, but the situation has become urgent in recent weeks. Dahari has made its contribution to the fight against the virus by collaborating since September 2020 with the Regional Health Directorate (DRS) of Anjouan to finance equipment and the digitization of the collection of health data on the island, a project funded by the British Embassy in Madagascar.

Before our intervention, investigators surveyed all the towns and villages on the island in order to track symptoms and detect contact cases as well as the movements of people suspected of being infected, recording their results on paper. A system which generates numerous errors and slowness problems in the analysis of data and their centralization, while reactivity is vital in controlling the virus.  

Working with DRS doctors, Dr Amelaid Houmadi, doctor in ecology and head of monitoring and evaluation at Dahari, developed a questionnaire in the form of a mobile application (Kobo) which allows deployed people to collect precise, updated information. updated live on the central database thanks to the 4G connection. The results are then visualized in the form of interactive tables and graphs.

Data is now analyzed instantly, whereas it used to take days to get results from data collected on paper. Daily monitoring of infections in health posts and hospitals, even more useful in this period of resurgence, is also ensured thanks to a second mobile questionnaire.

In order to carry out this project, Dahari financed the purchase of 21 smartphones and a laptop which now allow health workers to complete questionnaires with the population and process the data collected. The 21 technicians using smartphones were trained by Amelaid in the use of the Kobo mobile application in order to put them in the best conditions to work effectively in the field, as were the two managers in charge of compiling and processing the data.

As during the passage of Cyclone Kenneth in 2019, Dahari was able to exploit its know-how and go beyond its core business to respond to the country's emergencies. The initiative, which is bearing fruit for Covid-19, could subsequently be used in the context of monitoring other, more common diseases.