About
Tsogolo La Thanzi
Tsogolo La Thanzi (TLT) is an independent non-profit organization dedicated to improving the life conditions of the people of Malawi through innovative program interventions informed by scientific research. Tsogolo La Thanzi is a Chichewa language term which means ‘healthy future’. As the name advocates, our vision is to improve the human condition of poor and marginalised communities using innovative scientific solutions in pursuit of a healthy future and happiness. TLT conducts collaborative research that tackles critical issues in health, education, and human rights. TLT empowers communities through capacity building, knowledge sharing, and active participation in the research process. TLT strives to translate research findings into actionable solutions for lasting positive change.
TLT was founded in 2008 to implement social science and public health research. TLT was first registered in Malawi in 2009 as a local research NGO and rebranded in 2018 and is currently registered as Tsogolo La Thanzi – Health Future. TLT has the main office in Balaka and branches in Blantyre, Zomba, Lilongwe and Mzuzu. TLT’s initial effort was to implement a National Institutes of Health (NIH) funded longitudinal study of family and health between 2009 and 2019. The team that worked together for 10 years rebranded TLT and expanded to become one of the well-established organizations specialized in program interventions and research. TLT is an active member of the NGO Regulatory Authority (NGORA) and the Council for Non-Government Organizations in Malawi (CONGOMA).
International and local partners rely on us to collaborate in answering questions that demand an objective and multidisciplinary approach—one that integrates expertise across the social and health sciences and international development. Our clients have been abetted in finding solutions for their quest by our multidisciplinary team. Our unique expertise and experience rests in combining the implementation of program interventions guided by scientific research. TLT has both program implementers and researchers. Our team has implemented innovative gold-standard interventions and delivered reliable research data using novel technologies.
Research Facilities
TLT office in Balaka, has over 10,000 square metres of space, combines departments for Administration, Finance, Storage, Research, and Business Development, allowing for efficient work flows during project implementation, and enabling close communication among Departments. To support its projects, TLT has Computers, Lenovo Tablets, GPS units and Sony Digital recorders for data collection and project administration. TLT office also has different software packages including standard Windows 10 and Microsoft Office and communication suites, SPSS, STATA, CSPro, Nvivo, Atlas, ArcGIS and various CAPI and CAWI such as survey CTO, ODK among others. TLT also has laptops and wireless internet access for office and fieldwork teams. Fieldwork teams have access to cell phones, GPS units and mapping software to coordinate and manage fieldwork data.
TLT Research Team
The TLT team is composed of a network of researchers across the globe with over 100 years of combined experience in study design, data collection, data management, data analysis and report writing. Our local research team in Balaka hold degrees in various disciplines, and are composed of statisticians, data managers, research managers, field supervisors and enumerators with proven track record in handling complex data collection designs. TLT research managers have a good working relationship with various Malawi government ministries and the National Statistics Office which provides national sampling frame and geographical maps which are crucial for certain research studies.
TLT Technical Management Team
Our Statisticians and data management team are composed of experts who have handled complex programming of data collection instruments and data bases. Our technical team is well acquainted with various forms and types of CAPI, CAWI Software and GPS tracking software. They have hands-on experience working with Stata, R, Atlas and Nvivo for quantitative and qualitative data management and analysis. The technical team has graduates in Statistics and Economics who provide statistical solutions to demands of statistical project design, data management, analysis, monitoring and impact evaluations.
Financial Management
TLT has efficiently managed projects funds from National Institute of Health, NORC, University of Chicago, University of Toronto, University of Minnesota, University of Toronto, Penn State University, University of California at Berkeley, Malawi Government and DFID Malawi. TLT is transparent in its financial management and is very committed to working together with its clients to ensure efficient use of project resources. TLT maintains Foreign Currency (US Dollar) and Local Currency (Kwacha) accounts which makes it convenient to receive international electronic wire transfers and manage the funds locally.
Research Ethics
LT adheres to research ethics and professional standards of data collection, data management and transparency in its financial management. TLT understand that seeking research ethics approval can be a lengthy process, therefore, it instituted a well-trained research ethics desk officer who prepares protocols, conducts initial review and prepare timely ethics submissions to appropriate local research ethics committees. The research ethics team is experienced in international ethical guidelines for the conduct of research and is well acquainted with the standard operating procedures for Malawian Research Ethics Committees. TLT is probably the only research firm that is better placed to receive timely ethics approvals without issues because it takes these research ethics and collaborative partnership matters seriously.
Capacity Building and Team Building
Over the past decade the TLT research team has improved and gained research management experience from its collaboration with some of the world’s leading researchers and program implementers. These professionals have imparted the TLT research team with perfect hands-on learning experience in quantitative and qualitative analytical skills, project management and monitoring and evaluation skills. TLT has expanded this knowledge building by training its own local team in research methodology, data collection, data management, quality control, HIV Testing and Management in order to improve performance in the area. TLT recognises that having a mature, well-trained, well-educated and experienced team gets things done efficiently. TLT welcomes capacity building efforts from its collaborators since there the learning process and route to perfection is a continuous process. TLT has also offered education scholarships to secondary and master students. The graduates from these humanitarian efforts return to work and assist TLT improve its capacity in research.
Distinctiveness of TLT research team
TLT has the experience of implementing research and programs. TLT has greatly improved it operation by taking into consideration lessons learnt and feedback from its clients but also through leaning from other organisations. TLT appreciates and values all the efforts its clients’ investments in research and programs and ensures successful implementation and timely submission of laid out deliverables to the satisfaction of its clients. The following are the features that make TLT unique:
| Communication: | TLT promptly communicates with clients to provide progress. |
| Ethics Approval: | TLT gets Research Ethics Committee approval certificates on time. |
| Excellent Team Building: | TLT built a committed research team that delivers efficiently. |
| Engagement: | TLT understand local dynamics, listens and engages its clients in planning. |
| Professionalism: | TLT values clients’ investments in research and programs. |
| Transparency: | TLT has swift, efficient and flexible financial management systems. |
| Trust: | TLT is a trusted collaborator in research and programs implementation. |
Project Management Experience
TLT researchers have conducted research in all the 28 districts of Malawi and has worked with research assistants in every corner of the country. TLT has conducted studies in areas of Education, Social Science, Sexual and Reproductive Health, Public Health and Finance. TLT has collaborated with researchers from universities and companies from the USA, Canada, Malawi, Germany, Switzerland and England. TLT researchers have also worked with the USAID, World Bank, UNFPA, Malawi Government (Ministries of Education, Gender, Local Government, Disaster and Relief Management and Agriculture) and National AIDS Commission.
Below is a selection of projects that TLT implemented in Malawi.