Malawi has launched its second AVoHC–SURGE emergency responder training cohort in Lilongwe to strengthen national capacity for responding to public health emergencies, with support from the Pandemic Fund, the World Bank’s HEPRR initiative, and the World Health Organization (WHO). The program brings together 104 multisectoral participants drawn from key government ministries and institutions, including the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development, the Malawi Defence Force, and Kamuzu University of Health Sciences. Over a 27-day training period, participants will be equipped in critical areas such as humanitarian and health cluster coordination, rapid response operations, public health emergency management, gender-based violence prevention and response, protection from sexual exploitation and harassment, and emergency communication.
Officials emphasized that Malawi is facing increasingly complex and overlapping health threats, including cholera, mpox, measles, polio, and climate-related disasters such as floods and cyclones, requiring faster and more coordinated response systems. Health authorities highlighted that effective emergency preparedness must adopt a One Health approach that integrates human, animal, and environmental health to address evolving risks more comprehensively.
The WHO stressed that the SURGE approach is designed not only for deployment during crises but also to ensure preparedness before emergencies occur. It also highlighted the importance of embedding AVoHC–SURGE training into academic and professional curricula, alongside stronger integration with Emergency Medical Teams, to build an end-to-end response system from detection to care delivery. Lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic further reinforced the need to strengthen national systems, as cross-border deployment limitations exposed gaps in global response capacity.
The initiative aims to develop a skilled and ethically grounded emergency workforce capable of rapid deployment, improved coordination, and stronger alignment with global health security standards. It also reinforces Malawi’s growing contribution to regional preparedness and response efforts. This second cohort advances the country toward its goal of training 200 responders under the programme and builds on the first cohort, which trained 70 participants from government ministries, UN agencies, and partner institutions, reflecting a strong multisectoral One Health model already taking shape in Malawi.
