In recent weeks, 2,327 people from 11 communities in Nacala Porto district in Nampula attended (socially distanced) viewing sessions of community videos produced under the USAID Transform Nutrition project. The first viewing took place for 187 people in the Quissimalujo community.
“I want to congratulate Transform Nutrition for this initiative,” said Ms. Janete António, Director of SDSMAS of the District of Nacala Porto, who shared that she was positively surprised by the quality and effectiveness of the locally produced videos. “I have to admit that I was worried that the videos would misinform the community, but they are very good, and the people who are in the videos are from our community and speak in Macua,” commented Ms. António.
The spectators were equally positive. “I learnt something new from that lady from the other community,” said Atija Omar, a resident of the Mahelene neighborhood. “She showed how to prepare a nutritious porridge for the development and growth of babies from 6 months, and I will do it the way she did it.”
The community videos on nutrition are disseminated as part of the USAID Transform Nutrition project, which is implemented by a consortium led by ADPP and including h2n, GAIN, Unilúrio and Viamo. A randomized controlled study from India has shown that community video is 10 times more cost effective and leads to 7 times higher uptake of certain practices than traditional IPC or other extension practices.
In Mozambique, h2n is championing community videos produced by community video groups in local languages and in a local context on nutrition, education, gender-based violence, gender equality and women’s empowerment.