Our BabyWASH (water, sanitation and hygiene) project with UNICEF aims to encourage safer feeding and playing spaces for children under the age of three by targeting the hygiene habits of their mothers and fathers. For instance, washing hands with soap, keeping faces and bodies clean, wearing shoes, preparing food safely and hygienically, ensuring children play in protected areas and safely disposing of children鈥檚 faeces can all help young children to grow up healthier and more safely.
Through a five-minute radio drama series and a radio magazine-style programme, we brought critical health information to life for parents. Our local community discussion groups created safe and engaging spaces for conversations to reinforce learning about better hygiene. We also created a mobile 鈥榯oolkit鈥� for health extension workers, and trained them in delivering health information more effectively, to help maintain healthier hygiene and sanitation practices in communities across the country.
Our research showed that men who listened to our radio drama knew more about handwashing with soap before and after eating and were more likely than non-listeners to say they would wash their hands with soap before eating. And in the Amhara and Oromia regions findings confirmed our work has contributed to improved knowledge of sanitation and hygiene issues, and often led to the adoption of good practice.
Project information
| Project name | BabyWASH |
| Funder | UNICEF (backfunded by the EU) |
| Dates | 2017/2018 |
| Themes | Health |
| Outputs | Radio drama series, radio magazine-style programme, community discussion groups, health extension worker toolkit and training |
| Broadcast partners | Amhara Mass Media Association (AMMA) for Amhara region, Oromia Broadcasting Network (OBN) for Oromia and South Community Radio Station- Yirgalem Recording and Broadcasting Station in Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples鈥� Region (SNNPR) |
Our projects in Ethiopia
-
Negat: A new 'dawn' for young people in Ethiopia
Our radio and TV programme, Negat (Dawn), is challenging stereotypes and inspiring young people to seek out new opportunities. -
Protecting independent media for effective development
We are working with media support organisations and local partners to find out how best to support public interest media in Sierra Leone, Ethiopia and Bangladesh. -
How communication can address unsafe migration through and from Ethiopia
This programme focused on providing information and forums for discussion about unsafe and illegal migration so that people could make informed decisions. -
BabyWASH: Reducing childhood diarrhoea through radio
We encouraged healthier hygiene practices by mothers and fathers in Ethiopia to help protect children from often-deadly conditions such as diarrhoea through radio, community discussion and training with health workers. -
Using radio to address indoor air pollution in Ethiopia
Air We Breathe was a health-focused project in the Oromia region of Ethiopia addressing indoor air pollution through radio and public service announcements. -
Building resilience to extreme weather through radio
Radio programmes and mobile phone services have helped improve farmers鈥� access to accurate weather information in Ethiopia.
