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Project Cinémobile

Country

Madagascar, United States

Region

Global, Africa, North America

Programme Summary

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID)-funded Project Cinémobile is an effort to bring health education and information to rural areas in Madagascar through mobile video units. As part of this process, trained youth screen educational videos and interact with the audience through discussions and games. The project is designed to overcome the lack of access to health education and information that affects most of Madagascar’s population.

Communication Strategies

This project draws on information and communication technologies (ICTs) in the form of mobile video units (cinemobiles) to deliver health messages to rural and other vulnerable communities in an entertaining, interactive format. Each Cinémobile team consists of 3 well-trained young people, audio-visual equipment, and an all-terrain vehicle.

The teams tour the country and screen one of three films: "Tsy Digniko", on the subject of sexually transmitted infection (STI) and HIV/AIDS prevention, "Meva ny Sûr’Eau," on safe drinking water practices, and “Ilay Tolotra Sarobidy," on malaria prevention. Cinémobile facilitators engage the audience with a mix of discussions, games, and demonstrations. They distribute various goodies, samples, and gadgets to motivate rural audiences to attend multiple presentations.

Organisers have developed supplemental strategies, adapted to specific communities being addressed, to enhance the mobile video shows. For example, the programme produced soap operas which addressed issues of responsible sexual behaviour, condom use, STI treatment, and living with HIV/AIDS. In addition, the Cinémobile team organises malaria meetings for pregnant women and/or mothers with children under the age of 5 years at locations such as public health centres.

Development Issues

Health, HIV/AIDS.

Key Points

According to USAID, over three-quarters of Madagascar's population lives in rural areas, and only 6% of all households have a television. Approximately two-thirds of young women aged 15-24 to have no access to any form of mass media.

USAID indicates that Cinémobile's popularity is reflected in event attendance figures: Each team draws an average crowd of 750 to 1,000 per night and conducts around 15 presentations per month. One "Sûr’Eau, Sûr’e" presentation drew an audience of approximately 10,000. From the period of June 2000 to the end of 2005, a total of 3,569 presentations were conducted in 6 provinces and reached a total of approximately 2,664,150 people.

Furthermore, according to USAID, research in other countries demonstrates a link between Cinémobile presentations and preventive sexual behaviour. A community-based study conducted in Rwanda in 1998 found that males who had attended a Cinémobile presentation reported significantly higher condom use (32%) than those who had never attended.

Partners

USAID

Contact

Wendy Benazerga
6è Etage
Tour Zital
Zone immobilière Taloumis
Rue Ravoninahitriniarivo
Ankorondrano
B.P. 5233 Antananarivo 101
Madagascar
Tel: 261 20 22 53920
Fax: 261 20 22 53886/53887
Info.Madagascar@usaid.gov

Source

USAID website on March 14 2006; and emails from Jocelyne Andriamiadana to The Communication Initiative on April 10 and April 11 2007.


Placed on the Communication Initiative site April 02 2007
Last Updated August 20 2008

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