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Article History

Received: 22 December 2022

Accepted: 18 December 2023

First Online: 3 January 2024

Declarations

:

: The study was registered with the Pan African Clinical Trial Registry ( ) with the number PACTR202102477794401 on 25/02/2021. All methods were carried out in accordance with relevant guidelines and regulations. The Malawi National Health Sciences Research Committee (NHSRC) was the review board or ethics committee that reviewed and approve the study (Approval #2443) prior to the commencement. Informed consent was individually obtained from every participant at the very beginning before proceeding with their involvement after being explained to clearly about the study objectives and aims using local languages of Chichewa and Chiyao used in the study areas. For participants who were literate, a written informed consent was obtained while for those who were illiterate a written informed consent to participate was obtained through their legally authorized representatives (literate family members) instead. Similarly for the study participants who were children (under 15 years of age), informed consent to participate was collected from their parents or guardians on their behalf. All the research instruments that were used at community level were also translated to local languages.

: Not applicable. The manuscript does not contain any individual person’s data in any form.

: The authors declare no competing interests.