Countries in the Central Asia WHO region are increasingly adopting the use of alternative interventions to insecticides in the control of vector borne diseases (VBDs) such as malaria. Several countries have significantly reduced reliance on insecticides and as such on the application of DDT as well. In general, malaria cases have been reduced in recent years.

However, countries in the region are increasingly facing significant challenges in deploying and scaling up the use of the alternative interventions, and this is occurring at a time when several countries are experiencing resurgence of VBDs (mainly malaria), considered partly to be caused

as a consequence of climate change, but as well due to reduced donor assistance, own economic problems impacting the national budget, and the absence of a sustainable national vector borne disease control strategy. This situation is largely due to inadequate information on the applicability and cost-effectiveness of alternatives, as well as requisite technical and financial

resources. As a result, countries lack adequate local capacity for in-depth evaluation of underlying driving forces of the diseases, analysis of available alternatives and sound consideration of alternatives in national policy. These limitations, in turn, frustrate efforts to effectively design and apply alternatives that are suitable to local environmental, agro-ecological, epidemiological, and socio-economic settings, and undermine a coherent and integrated approach to vector control.

Besides these limitations, current POPs stocks dating from the Soviet time are – unofficially - available to the general public through illegal repackaging of abandoned stocks and/or crossborder smuggling, and although official statistics do not show the use of DDT, environmental monitoring activities by government institutions in some countries in the region show indiscriminate use of DDT, mostly in the agriculture sector but as well in disease control (typhus)  resulting in increased health and environmental risks.

Building on the existing efforts of the countries, and with the support by WHO, the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM) and other international organizations, this Project aims to: (a) demonstrate the applicability and cost-effectiveness of alternatives to DDT for vector control in the selected demonstration sites; (b) develop national capacity for planning and implementation of vector control in the context of integrated vector management (IVM); (c) identify and manage DDT stocks and wastes, and (d) coordinate dissemination and sharing of country experiences among countries and regions concerned. In order to prepare this Project document, national vector control needs have been assessed by the partners to serve as a basis for

determining the burden of VBDs, describing existing vector control strategies and programmes, identifying the best vector control approaches with reduced reliance on DDT and other insecticides, describing the relevant policy framework for vector control, and identifying existing resources and future needs for control of VBDs. The assessments give also the basis for selecting

demonstration sites, designing demonstration activities and the collation of baseline data for project monitoring and evaluation. Similar needs assessments were performed by Milieukontakt International and partners concerning environmental and agricultural consequences of DDT

In order to mitigate the burden of vector-borne diseases and to reduce reliance on persistent insecticides, the Member States of the World Health  rganization Regional Office for Europe (WHO Europe) have already introduced alternative tools and approaches to DDT and other insecticides.

The current Project is building on the existing efforts of countries and WHO to implement costeffective and environmentally sound national vector control, which generally relies less on or should help to phase out from pesticides like DDT. The project will also safeguard at least 60 tons of DDT per country from easily accessible stockpiles, present measures to safeguard difficultly

accessible stockpiles, and communicate on the hazards of DDT to specific target groups.

The project will further be the first project of this kind in the region involving collaboration between UN Agencies, the national governments and international and local NGOs to serve as an example for the Eastern Europe/Central Asia region how to manage POPs-containing pesticides

waste stocks including the environmentally safe and sound disposal of POPs-containing pesticides wastes.

Finally, the project will support regional information dissemination in order to make the available (and newly acquired) knowledge and experience known to other relevant partners. For this component it is planned that recent relevant publications in English language will be translated into Russian and national languages and subsequently distributed amongst partners, and, viceversa,

effective publications already existing in national languages will be, when appropriate, translated into English and Russian and national languages of the participating countries.