The Challenge

The border area crossed by the road linking Sikasso (Mali) to Bo-bo-Dioulasso (Burkina Faso) has a large population flow, particularly linked to cross-border commercial and cultural exchanges between these two cities Local and (especially) migrant communities are unprepared for the COVID-19 pandemic and other contagious diseases.

Fighting COVID-19 and transmissible with migrants and local communities.

Local communities as well as migrants are not prepared for COVID 19 pandemic as well as other contagious diseases.

Objectives

• To understand the barriers to the adoption of safe behaviours aiming to control contagious diseases (including COVID-19).

• To develop an RCCE approach and implement the campaign for the adoption of healthy behaviours to control contagious diseases.

What we did

1. Research:

   • Inception consultations

   • KAP study with our data collection partner CERIPS (qual & quant)

2. RCCE plan design:

   • Conceiving and creating plan and materials

   • Finding the adequate partners

3. Implementation:

   • Radio ads

   • A caravan tour led by MAGENTA’s coordinator

   • Community dialogue sessions led by community health workers

Methodology

1. Research:

   • 5 stakeholder consultations in December ( Border police; an-thropology & sociology migration specialists; Border monitor)

   • Quantitative: 256 face to face individual interviews

   • Qualitative: 6 FGD

2. RCCE campaign design:

   • Creative Brief

   • Moodboard

   • Key messages drafting & testing (For appeal, understanding, acceptance, relevance, motivation, persuasion and improvement)

3. Creative content: The team produced several visuals based on the key messages

   • 4 concept characters from different backgrounds.

   • 3 posters in both French and bambara

   • An image toolbox for healthcare providers facilitating community dialogue

4. The key messages:

   • Creating a sense of unity in the fight against COVID-19

   • Correlate protective measures against COVID-19 with other communicable diseases

   • Encourage the population to vote

5. Radio ads: 6 Radio ad scripts were developed for the RCCE campaign (In French and in Bambara)

   • ad about Unity against pandemics

   • 1 ad about the importance of protective measures

   • 1 ad about the importance of vaccination

Outcomes & Outputs

• 200 posters printed and distributed to be hanged in areas of high traffic such as public transportation terminals and commu-nity health centers

• 36 (35 in Mali and 28 in Burkina Faso) radio broadcasts during peak hours (8 AM, 1 PM, 6PM, 8PM). We estimate a reach of 180,000 man et 420,000 woman in Mali and 15,000 in Burkina Faso

• 550 people in Mali participated in the community dialogue sessions held in 8 villages and towns from July 2nd to July 17th . In Burkina Faso, the dialogue sessions took place in 7 villages from July 19th to July 30th.

• The campaign’s key messages reached an even bigger number considering that the field team drove around the villages broad-casting information as well as the radio ads.

• The caravan team collected feedback from the campaign beneficiaries through a survey of 7 questions about the impact of the activities and intended changes in behaviour in regard to protective measures and vaccination.

• The following are excerpts from the returned surveys:

  • “Ça renforce les connaissances sur les maladies” Heremakono Male

  • “[Oui je vais me faire vacciner] Dans les jours à venir” Finkolo Male