For NALA, the NNN Conference 2024 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia offered an opportunity to engage with global stakeholders and share lessons from our unique approach of complementary interventions to foster health and eliminate NTDs.
Bisrat Molla, a Senior NALA Project Manager, presented NALA’s unique approach to Multisectoral Coordination (MSC). His experience provided unique insights into NALA’s prevention-focused strategies, which center on bringing together different governmental sectors to strengthen coordination, foster collaboration, and optimize resource allocation, ensuring efforts to eliminate NTDs are both resource effective and impactful.
During his session, Bisrat shared the stage with participants from Kenya, India, Uganda, and Tanzania to discuss the pressing challenges in integrating water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) data with NTD programming. He highlighted NALA’s pioneering work in Ethiopia that has focused on sustaining efforts to keep WASH data aligned with national NTD priorities.
By the end of the session, participants agreed on key actions: to foster inter-ministerial collaboration, enhance cross-country experience sharing, and prioritize integrated planning for joint data utilization. As Bisrat put it, “It’s exciting to see the collective will to solve these challenges together.”
For Bisrat, the conference was not only about the sessions but also about the unique energy of shared purpose. “NALA has so many tools, materials, and community-level implementation lessons that we can share with global NTD programs,” he said.
The NNN Conference 2024 wasn’t just a meeting; it was a call to action. It is a reminder of the immense value of collaboration, the need for innovative solutions, and the power of human connection.
For NALA, it reaffirmed our commitment to holistic health solutions and sharing what we’ve learned with the global health sector. Together, with partners old and new, we’re building a resilient foundation for a healthier future – one story, one solution, and one shared vision at a time.