Castries, Saint Lucia. May 2, 2025. National and regional stakeholders gathered at the Bel Jou Hotel for the official launch of Mosquito No More, a public education campaign aimed at combatting mosquito-borne diseases (MBDs) in Saint Lucia. The initiative is led by the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) in partnership with the Ministry of Health, Wellness and Elderly Affairs, and supported by the European Union.
The campaign addresses mosquito-borne diseases—including Dengue, Zika, and Chikungunya —through a multisectoral approach that focuses on long-term behavioural change. It engages partners from the education, tourism, and religious sectors, as well as community groups, to promote prevention through targeted training, grassroots messaging, and community-driven action.
Speaking at the launch, Dr Horace Cox, Director of Surveillance, Disease Prevention and Control (Ag.) at CARPHA, emphasized the importance of partnership and sustained collaboration:
“We know that the task at hand exceeds the scope of any single sector. Therefore, CARPHA is happy to champion a coordinated collaborative effort in attempting to change attitudes toward mosquito-borne diseases in Saint Lucia. That is why we have engaged all of you—our key sector partners—as we pilot this Public Education Campaign and chart a course toward a better informed and healthier island.”
Referencing the major burdens that Saint Lucia faced during mosquito-borne disease outbreaks in 2015 and 2016, Ms. Jenny Daniel, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health, Wellness and Elderly Affairs, underscored the campaign’s relevance:
“We must be committed to developing robust plans to mitigate this ever-present public health risk. As such I’m pleased to share with you that significant investments continue to be made by the Government of St. Lucia in collaboration with strategic partners {like CARPHA} to combat vector-borne diseases in St. Lucia”
The campaign Launch took place during a week of capacity-building activities. From April 28th to 30th, the project’s implementing consultants, in collaboration with CARPHA, conducted in-depth training with stakeholders from the Ministry of Health, Wellness and Elderly Affairs (Environmental Health and Health Promotion Units), as well as representatives from the education sector, tourism industry, and religious organizations. These sessions were designed to equip each sector with the tools and knowledge needed to act as community change agents, helping to disseminate messages on mosquito source reduction and personal protection through trusted local networks.
Running through August 2025, the pilot of the Mosquito No More campaign will be grounded in a realist framework, emphasizing “what works, for whom, and under what conditions.” The implementation plan includes the creation of bilingual materials in English and Creole, digital tools such as QR codes and educational videos, and pilot projects within selected schools, churches, communities, and tourism sites. The pilot phase will inform a full national rollout beginning in August 2025.
The campaign is underpinned by a comprehensive suite of vector control training materials, developed through close consultation with stakeholder representatives and technical experts. These materials are the result of several months of groundwork by the implementing consultant team and are now hosted on a user-friendly website: www.mosquitonomore.info.
Supported by funding from the European Union through the 11th EDF Zika Project, this initiative is a response to long-standing challenges in vector-borne disease prevention. It represents one of several coordinated activities under CARPHA’s regional vector disease control strategy. By uniting sectors and empowering communities with practical tools and knowledge, the campaign seeks to inspire sustainable, locally led change.
More information on the work the project can be found of CARPHA’s website, www.carpha.org and its social media pages; Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
A recording of the launch event is available here