Operationalizing stakeholder engagement for gene drive research in malaria elimination in Africa-translating guidance into practice.

Gene drive mosquitoes are increasingly considered a potential transformational tool for vector control of malaria mosquitoes. As part of efforts to promote responsible research in this field, a number of guidance documents have been published by the World Health Organization, National Academies and expert groups. While virtually all recent guidance documents on gene drive research stress the importance of stakeholder engagement activities, no specific guidelines on implementing them have been established.

Co-developing a common glossary with stakeholders for engagement on new genetic approaches for malaria control in a local African setting.

Stakeholder engagement is an essential pillar for the development of innovative public health interventions, including genetic approaches for malaria vector control. Scientific terminologies are mainly lacking in local languages, yet when research activities involve international partnership, the question of technical jargon and its translation is crucial for effective and meaningful communication with stakeholders. Target Malaria, a not-for-profit research consortium developing innovative genetic approaches to malaria vector control, carried out a linguistic exercise in Mali, Burkina Faso and Uganda to establish the appropriate translation of its key terminology to local languages of sites where the teams operate.