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NIHR-GHRG Steering Group Meeting 2025

It’s not just a process! Co-designing workshops also strengthens Mental Health

“It’s Not Just a Process: Co-Designing WASH Interventions Also Strengthens Mental Health”

During Mental Health Awareness Week, NIHR-GHRG Work Strand 4 (WASH and Adolescent Health) reflects on how community-led co-design workshops have supported more than just sanitation solutions – they’ve nurtured adolescent mental wellbeing.

By bringing together adolescents, parents, teachers, health workers, and local leaders to collaboratively design interventions, we created safe, inclusive spaces where young people felt heard and valued. Discussions around menstruation, bullying, and hygiene facilities became gateways for building trust, empathy, and dignity—key pillars of mental health.

This experience reinforces a vital truth: community-driven participation isn’t just about solving problems – it’s a powerful act of collective care.

Listening Differently: WS6 Trains for Child-Centred Research on Adolescent Wellbeing in Blantyre

The Team researching on Inspiring Adolescent Wellbeing (WS6) recently completed a week-long training in Blantyre, Malawi, preparing researchers to explore how adolescents aged 10–14 perceive their social and emotional wellbeing. The training focused on ethical research practices, adapting tools into Chichewa, and using innovative storytelling methods to engage young participants. This participatory and narrative-driven approach aims to create a safe, child-centred environment where adolescents can share what truly matters to them.

Co-Designing of Water Sanitation & Hygiene (WASH) Interventions Continues in Blantyre City

“I have liked this meeting because it was safe. There was not that this one is old, and this one is young. We were all doing things as one.” (Male adolescent attendee) Work Strand 4 (WASH team) of the NIHR Global Research Group on Improving Adolescent Health &...

Breaking the Chains of Child Marriage in Malawi: A New Dawn for Girls

Imagine being forced into marriage before finishing school, with your dreams set aside by tradition and poverty. For many young girls in Malawi, this is a reality, as the country’s child marriage rate remains at a staggering 37.7%—almost double the global average. Despite efforts to end this practice, the question remains: why does it persist, and what can be done to change it?

Finally, the chance to return!

By Dr. Tara Beattie My last visit to Malawi was just before Covid19 hit in 2020, and obviously during the pandemic opportunity to come out was very restricted. I was then disappointed I couldn’t attend the project launch meeting in November 2022. So when the...

 Exploring Adolescent Health in Malawi: A Journey through Longitudinal Insights

Welcome to our blog, where we embark on a fascinating journey investigating the   complexities of early adolescent health and well-being in the vibrant landscape of Malawi. Join us as we explain the stories, challenges, and triumphs encountered in our...

Navigating New Horizons: A PhD Student’s Reflections and Discoveries

~ by Velia Manyonga -University of Strathclyde (Scotland) I was very excited when I was offered the scholarship to study PhD in Social Policy with the University of Strathclyde. For years, I harbored a strong desire to further my education, but financial constraints...

Tackling Adverse Childhood Events, A Key to Achieving Adolescents’ Health Rights

On this World Health Day, we advocate for the fundamental right to health for all, including adolescents who are shaping our future. However, for many young people, their health journey is marred by the shadow of Adverse Childhood Events (ACEs), which profoundly...

Leveraging water for peace: a way to go! Understanding young people’s experiences would be helpful, right?

Lack of access to safe and adequate water supply remains a challenge globally, but especially in sub-Saharan Africa. With a predominately youthful population in this region, this is a challenge that continues to blight the lives of young people. In Malawi nearly half...

Altering Perspective – Reflection from initial days of my PhD Journey

I have worked in research since 2014, but this years’ experience from data collection in the field has completely changed my perspective on quite an important issue we often talk about. I was very excited to start our formative data collection exercise, where our work...

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May 23, 2025

Strengthening Strategy, Celebrating Progress, and Reaffirming Commitment

The NIHR-funded Global Health Research Group (GHRG) on Improving Adolescent Health and Wellbeing in Malawi held its annual Steering Group Meeting in Blantyre, Malawi, on 21 May 2025. This high-level gathering brought together national leaders, cross-disciplinary researchers, and institutional partners – University of Strathclyde, Kamuzu University of Health Sciences and Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences (including National University of Singapore and University of Glasgow) to reflect on progress, explore preliminary findings, and plan for the next stage of impact.

The Steering Group, co-chaired by Judith Msusa (Director of Youth, Ministry of Youth and Sports) and Dr. Henry Phiri (Deputy Director, Ministry of Health – Reproductive Health Directorate), plays a vital role in ensuring that the research remains responsive, ethical, and aligned with national priorities. Their leadership, along with insights from various stakeholders, shaped robust conversations on how evidence is already informing community-level and policy-focused action.

Key Themes and Reflections

Judith Msusa opened the session by commending the team for the project’s steady progress and emphasised the Steering Group’s critical role going forward:
“We are seeing steady progress. What’s important now is how we translate this into results — and how we, as a Steering Group, continue to provide quality insight, recommendations and accountability as this work grows.”

The meeting featured interactive presentations from each of the six Work Strands, providing a comprehensive snapshot of ongoing fieldwork, co-design activities, and early outcomes.

WS1: Longitudinal Adolescent Wellbeing

  • – Recruitment of 1,232 adolescents across urban and rural sites.
  • – Phase 2 interviews focusing on life events, wellbeing, and transitions.
  • – Establishing a baseline for long-term policy-relevant insights.

WS2: Economic and Policy Frameworks

  • – Analysis of national economic and social policies impacting adolescents.
  • – Identification of barriers to equitable access to services across age, gender, and geography.
  • – Informing sustainable policy shifts through economic modeling and advocacy tools.

WS3: Education, Aspirations & ACEs

  • – Tools developed and piloted to assess the influence of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs).
  • – School-based data informing tailored educational interventions.
  • – Emphasis on resilience-building and aspiration support.

WS4: Water, Sanitation & Hygiene (WASH)

  • – Co-design workshops conducted in urban and rural schools.
  • – Adolescents raised key concerns around menstruation, safety, and toilet access.
  • – WASH seen not only as a health issue but also as a contributor to mental wellbeing.

WS5: Sexual & Reproductive Health & Rights (SRHR) and Adolescents

  • – Stakeholder and community consultations on SRHR barriers.
  • – Research exploring stigma, access, and gaps in service provision for 10–14-year-olds.
  • – Supporting inclusive and age-appropriate SRHR policy reform and intervention design.

WS6: Inspiring Adolescent Wellbeing

  • – Narrative storytelling and creative methods used to explore emotions, identity, and peer relationships.
  • – Data collection completed with adolescents aged 10–14 in Blantyre and Mchinji.
  • – Upcoming co-design sessions to be shaped by youth-driven priorities.

Collaborative Momentum

Participants expressed appreciation for the participatory nature of the project and the clear alignment between the Work Strands and Malawi’s adolescent health policies. Steering Group members offered constructive recommendations, including:
– Strengthening links between the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Education through evidence sharing.
– Prioritising visibility of adolescent voices in future national strategy sessions.
– Ensuring sustainability and post-project integration of co-designed interventions.

Looking Ahead

As the NIHR-GHRG moves toward the co-design and implementation phase of interventions, this meeting served as a powerful checkpoint – a chance to align on vision, ground decisions in evidence, and reaffirm the group’s shared commitment to improving the lives of Malawi’s adolescents.

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