Understanding the Role of Secondary Malaria Vectors in Tanzania

ResearchLink International has submitted a comprehensive funding application for an eight-year research project titled "Understanding the Growing Role of Secondary Malaria Vectors Anopheles parensis and Anopheles squamosus in Malaria Transmission: Ecology, Genetic Diversity, and Insecticide Resistance in Tanzania." This ambitious project aims to fill critical knowledge gaps about these secondary vectors which sustain residual malaria transmission, thereby supporting Tanzania's malaria elimination goals.

Project Overview

While malaria control efforts have traditionally focused on primary vectors, recent evidence highlights the growing epidemiological importance of secondary vectors like Anopheles parensis and Anopheles squamosus, which exhibit outdoor and opportunistic biting behaviors that evade common indoor interventions. The project will systematically assess their spatial distribution, behavior, larval habitats, genetic diversity, and insecticide resistance profiles using cutting-edge field and molecular techniques.

Key Activities and Timeline

• Duration: 8 years (Start date: January 1, 2026)

• Phases include:

  • Baseline ecological and behavioral surveys

  • Longitudinal vector surveillance

  • Molecular genetic and resistance assays

  • Capacity building for local researchers

  • Data integration, policy engagement, and dissemination

Budget Highlights

• Total funding requested: approximately USD 3.36 million

• Major cost drivers:

  • Skilled personnel including project manager, field technicians, research assistants, and PhD students

  • Extensive fieldwork and travel across Tanzania’s diverse ecological zones

  • Advanced laboratory equipment and consumables

  • International collaborations including research visits to the University of Florida

  • Training and capacity building activities

  • Data management, open-access publication, and dissemination costs

ResearchLink International’s Role

As the principal applicant’s employer and a major operational hub, ResearchLink International will lead the coordination of fieldwork, administrative management, and staffing. The organization is responsible for ensuring smooth project execution, managing budgets, and building research capacity through structured mentorship and training.

Strategic Impact

This project will generate actionable knowledge to improve targeted malaria vector control strategies addressing outdoor and residual transmission challenges. The findings will directly contribute to strengthening Tanzania’s National Malaria Control Programme and can inform vector control policies across similar endemic regions in Africa, accelerating progress toward malaria elimination.