NextBillion.net - Development Through Enterprise - Bednets and the Demise of Social Marketing - What the NY Times Missed - Comments

In the past whenever there

Eddie — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 14:45:36 -0400

In the past whenever there are 'public events' or charity shows such as Live Aid, one often wonders how the money is spent. We assume in the warmth of our houses that it will be wisely invested and given to the needy, but I guess we forget that the real progress is made by the people who educate and work their butts off to help people under these extreme circumstances. If only governments worked to build community with less wealthy countries rather than give handouts and forget the real issues, maybe we wouldn't have those problems. Anyway, enjoyed your post.

nets

craig lefebvre — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 08:52:50 -0400

There are many difficulties inherent in taking on an ideology that seems more intent on 'winning' over social marketing than helping the poor and building the capacity of the private sector. Thanks for pointing out the very real consequences of this type of 'helping.'

A Holistic Approach Promoting Bednets includes Social Marketing

Andrew — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 16:22:21 -0400

A ten-year project funded by USAID to prevent malaria by increasing access to and use of ITNs in sub-Saharan Africa, NetMark (www.netmarkafrica.org) addresses the challenges you discuss in three ways: commercial expansion, short term targeted subsidies or market priming activities, and long-term targeted subsidies to vulnerable groups in order to achieve equity. Working to increase demand through messaging, increase supply by working with vendors and distributors, improve technology in collaboration with manufacturers, and reduce obstacles through advocacy, NetMark aims both to develop a sustainable commercial market and to ensure that vulnerable groups have access to affordable ITNs. In addition to increasing the proportion of households that own ITNs, the project also seeks to increase nightly use of treated nets, especially by pregnant women and children under five years of age; and to increase the proportion of net owners who, if not using a long-lasting ITN, regularly treat their nets with insecticide. Managed by the Academy for Educational Development (AED), NetMark has programs in Ethiopia, Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, and Uganda. its partners include over 40 national and international insecticide and net manufacturers, product distributors, and advertising companies. A recently published study analyses the use and awareness of ITNs in Uganda. It can be accessed at tMark%20Uganda%202006%20HH%20Survey%20FINAL%208-23-07.pdf...

Social Marketing of Bed Nets

Omar Yaqub — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 22:33:22 -0400

Hello, I think we're both talking along the same lines. I'd be very happy, ecstatic, to help with any social marketing efforts. Please let me know if there is anyway I can help. Cheers, Omar http://omar.yaqub.org

Very true, Omar. In fact,

Abigail Keene-Babcock — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 11:30:16 -0400

Very true, Omar. In fact, upon returning from her work with A to Z in Tanzania, Keely Stevenson (Acumen Fund 2006 Fellow) shared many insights about this gap between receiving (or buying) a bednet, and the use of it every single night. Keely's insights about consumer education techniques, social marketing and pricing mechanisms that actually produce social outcomes should be available soon through white paper publications and other resources.

For now, anyone interested in more details can listen to an audio recording of Keely's insights, and those of the other Acumen 2006 Fellows, here.

Social Marketing of Bed Nets

Omar Yaqub — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 10:51:39 -0400

One more thing… What's important to realize is that putting a net in someone's hand doesn't necessarily translate into a net over someone's bed. What often happens is the net goes under the bed and is forgotten about, it is sold, or it is cut up and used less effectively as window and door coverings. Social marketing helps to ensure that nets are used properly, plus it creates demand for them where it may not have previously existed.

Bednets and the Demise of Social Marketing - What the NY Times Missed

Abigail Keene-Babcock — Wed, 10 Oct 2007 12:29:47 -0400

The New York Times ran an interesting but rather incomplete article yesterday, discussing the split over anti-malaria bednet distribution strategies in Africa and the apparent demise of “social marketing” as a legitimate approach to reducing illness on a large scale. The article focuses on an ongoing debate in the aid community over whether or not insecticide-treated bednets, produced by Danish and Japanese makers and purchased by aid agencies, should always be given way in mass quantities for free.

Evidence provided in the article points to the failure of “social marketing” techniques (advertising, branding, and selling of essential goods with social value through local distributors, sometimes at heavily subsidized prices) to reduce local, short-term rates of malaria infection as fast as the massive free hand-outs of nets by aid agencies. Senator Tom Coburn (R) Oklahoma was quoted as going so far as to say that, “We knew social marketing doesn’t work."

But let’s take a step back. First, who, in this case, is conducting the “social marketing”? It's the aid industry. What is the aid industry designed to do? Raise, collect, and then deliver charity to those in need.

(This article continues past the break; click "Read More" to continue)