RESADE at the Second Annual Meeting of the IMARISHA Project
The research team leading the IMARISHA project at RESADE participated in the second annual meeting of the IMARISHA project, held August 10–15, 2026, in Zanzibar, Tanzania “Strengthening Primary Health Care by Addressing Gendered Workplace Violence.” This meeting brought together all the consortium partners: UNU-IIGH (Malaysia), the Ifakara Health Institute (Tanzania), SOPH/UWC (South Africa), INSP and RESADE (Burkina Faso), as well as representatives from health and government authorities in Zanzibar (Tanzania).
Objectives of the meeting
The overall purpose of the meeting was to take stock of the first two years of the IMARISHA project’s implementation (lessons learned and necessary adjustments), to strengthen ties among the country teams, and to collectively plan the next phase of the project. More specifically, the meeting aimed to:
- review the process for conducting quantitative surveys and research on experiences of workplace violence;
- take stock of the qualitative aspects and how they complement the quantitative data: what worked in Tanzania, and the preparations in Burkina Faso and South Africa;
- take a critical and constructive look at the SPIRIT principles (participatory, feminist, decolonial, trauma-informed, and safeguarding) and identify areas that need refinement;
- rethink stakeholder engagement strategies and refine the participatory action research component in each national context;
- assess the results of capacity-building efforts at the individual, organizational, and consortium levels;
- Review the country teams’ work plans, the progress on ethics cases and the NIHR annual report, as well as the positioning in the country papers and the consortium paper.
RESADE’s Contribution
Working throughout the week, the RESADE team contributed to the project by:
- a presentation on the implementation of the SPIRIT principles in Burkina Faso, including its achievements and challenges, particularly with regard to safeguarding and psychological support for researchers and participants;
- a report on the status of stakeholder engagement in Burkina Faso and the lessons learned from the initial outreach activities;
- the presentation of RESADE’s work plan during the session dedicated to partner plans, as well as participation in parallel sessions on financial management, grant management, and governance;
- facilitating several workshop sessions: chairing sessions, opening circles, daily recaps, and energizers;
- a substantial contribution to group work on reflexivity and action research.
A Team Re-energized for Year 3
RESADE emerges from this second annual meeting fully satisfied with the quality of the discussions, the richness of the exchange of experiences among the three countries, and the importance given to its voice in the collective development of the project. The contextual adaptations and challenges identified by the Tanzanian team, as well as the lessons learned regarding reflexivity and safeguarding, will be leveraged for the continued implementation of the project in Burkina Faso. The team is therefore leaving Zanzibar with renewed energy, determined to carry out the activities of Year 3 of the IMARISHA project in Burkina Faso with rigor and commitment, in collaboration with the INSP team.
