Description of Session
We all know the power of mobile phones in reaching people in low-income contexts. But traditional mobile-based interventions have been used for just that - to reach people: either to push messaging at users, or extract data from them. They have been built around either basic SMS, WhatsApp or new apps which many in the communities we serve do not have the technographic access, the digital literacy or the data budget to be able to utilise effectively. We believe in the power of mobile for going beyond simply reaching people. We believe in the power of building engaging digital communities to enable people to change their own lives, using the basic mobile phones they have in their hands. Based on this, we have built U Afya - an online community for young mothers and mothers-to-be in low-income communities across Nairobi, which drives real-life behaviour change through digital engagement. The site takes a holistic approach to giving mothers the knowledge and confidence they need to enact certain healthy behaviours in relation to health, hygiene and family life. It’s a place to connect, give and receive advice, take free online courses, and to establish good habits with a custom-built habit tracking tool. And it’s all accessible via a basic internet enabled feature phone. This session will cover: HCD process we undertook with mothers to develop and run U Afya for and with them How we identified barriers, triggers and motivators to certain healthy behaviours, and created a comprehensive set of SBCC approaches and digital tools Rapid piloting and iterative content design using WhatsApp U Afya theory of change and integrated solution package Initial results in terms of reinforced knowledge, heightened confidence, increased affordability of health-influencing products, and a move towards establishing healthy behaviours as a habit
