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The Communication Initiative
After nearly 28 years, The Communication Initiative (The CI) Global is entering a new chapter. Following a period of transition, the global website has been transferred to the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) in South Africa, where it will be administered by the Social and Behaviour Change Communication Division. Wits' commitment to social change and justice makes it a trusted steward for The CI's legacy and future.
 
Co-founder Victoria Martin is pleased to see this work continue under Wits' leadership. Victoria knows that co-founder Warren Feek (1953–2024) would have felt deep pride in The CI Global's Africa-led direction.
 
We honour the team and partners who sustained The CI for decades. Meanwhile, La Iniciativa de Comunicación (CILA) continues independently at cila.comminitcila.com and is linked with The CI Global site.
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The Drum Beat 595 - Impact Series #2: Soul City - Demonstrating Impact on Social and Behaviour Change

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595
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...Proportion of those who used a condom at last sex increased as exposure intensity to Soul City media increased...

 ...Those that were exposed to 4 Soul City media were almost 3 times more likely to be tested for HIV compared to those without exposure...

...There was a 17% increase in non-stigmatising attitudes attributable to exposure to Soul City 7 TV...

...Increase in non-stigmatising attitudes in children on 6 items was attributable to Soul Buddyz TV.

 


This issue of The Drum Beat is the second in a series of 5 that highlight specific examples of the impact that communication is having on development in a myriad of ways. These examples are culled from presentations shared at a meeting hosted by UNAIDS and The Communication Initiative on March 29 2011 ("Social and Behavioural Change Research Results: Strategic Implications") in Geneva, Switzerland. You may notice that each of the Drum Beat issues included in this series is shorter than normal; our goal is to hone in on just a few illustrations of the most compelling impact data to emerge from the Geneva meeting - with the hope that you will delve deeper as your interests drive you.

This second presentation - "Soul City Institute: Demonstrating Impact on Social and Behaviour Change" explores the evaluation strategies and impact developed by the Soul City Institute for Health and Development Communication in the area of social and behaviour change communication (SBCC). Soul City is a South Africa-based non-governmental organisation (NGO) operating regionally and using approaches such as mass media and edutainment, advocacy, social mobilisation, and school- and community-based outreach activities to promote health and development in South Africa.


For a more complete summary of "Soul City Institute: Demonstrating Impact on Social and Behaviour Change" on The CI site, please click here.

For access to the full presentation itself in PDF format, please click here.
 


SOUL CITY'S SBCC MODEL

On this model: change is not a linear process; behaviour is the product of interactions between components of a complex system; change in the system is linked by feedback processes; key drivers of the change process include dialogue and debate, action and reflection, social learning, and efficacy; and theories of change undergirding it include Bandura's Social Learning and Lewin's Theory of Change.

 

 


Amongst Soul City's offerings are the following 4 major avenues:


1. Soul City - Components of the initiative include a televised prime-time drama, a radio drama (thirty 15-minute episodes in 9 African languages), a series of booklets, and a film series.

See, for example [scroll down to "Related Summaries" for much more]:


2. Soul Buddyz - Components of the Soul Buddyz intervention, which is designed for 8- to 12-year-olds, include: a television drama, "Soul Buddyz Television"; a radio intervention, "Soul Buddyz Radio", consisting of drama and interactive talk between children and adults; and a "Lifeskills Booklet" for Grade 7. In addition, there is a face-to-face intervention called Soul Buddyz Clubs, which is implemented in primary schools in collaboration with the Department of Education. There are over 6,000 clubs involving 100,000 children nationally. The intervention also includes a reality television programme, "Buddyz on the Move".

For further details, see these summaries:


3. Kwanda is a 13-part reality television show developed by the Soul City Institute for Health and Development Communication, the Department of Social Development, and SABC 1 in South Africa which is designed to inspire viewers to take action to improve their own communities. The drama series, which started broadcasting in September 2009, shows teams of volunteers from all over the country working together to see whether common challenges faced by South African communities can be resolved. Kwanda showcases volunteers attempting to ensure that children are not going hungry, violent crime is reduced, and, generally, that their communities look better, work better, and feel better.

4. Films:

  • Untold: Stories in a Time of HIV and AIDS - a series of 9 short films from 9 Southern African countries that deal with a range of issues including HIV testing, teacher-learner relationship abuses, friendship, loyalty, fidelity, gender-based violence, growing up and making choices, living with HIV, and AIDS orphans.
  • Love - Stories in a Time of HIV/AIDS - a series of 10 half-hour films produced for television in 10 countries in Southern Africa, exploring the many facets of love in the context of HIV/AIDS.


Sample evaluation findings are listed here, with more shared in the full presentation:

  • Soul City has reached about 80% of the adult population, and Soul Buddyz and Soul City reach about 90% of children 8-12 years of age.
  • Of 4,055 15- to 24-year-olds surveyed in 2005, 94.6% found Soul City to be useful with regard to HIV/AIDS information, and 90% of this same group found Soul Buddyz to be useful for that purpose.
  • For Soul City exposure (series 1-6), it was found that condom use at last sex increased by the number of Soul City media to which the individual was exposed. For example, amongst those exposed to 1 medium, 68% did not use a condom at last sex, whereas 32% did. Amongst those exposed to 4 media, 48% did not use a condom at last sex, whereas 52% did.
  • During series 6 of Soul City, it was clear that the number of people using condoms "always" with a regular partner increased as the exposure to Soul City 6 multimedia exposure increased.
  • Similarly, a dose response was found with regard to HIV testing in the past 12 months: Increased exposure to Soul City media leads to increased testing.
  • Soul City, series 7, was found to have an impact on stigma. In response to the statement "HIV is the result of sinning", those who disagreed with that statement numbered 74 of those exposed to Soul City, as compared to 57 amongst a matched control.
  • Data are shared for the percentage showing positive attitudinal changes towards people living with HIV by exposure to Soul Buddyz television. For instance, when faced with the statement "It would be foolish to marry an HIV+ person", 62% of those exposed to Soul City disagreed, whereas 44% of those not exposed disagree.

 


Webinar Series: Equity-Focused Evaluations

This series of webinars will address the challenges and opportunities in evaluating the effects of policies, programmes, and projects to enhance equitable development results, with a special focus on the effects to the most excluded, marginalised, and deprived groups. The second webinar will be on September 21 2011, with Belen Sanz, Chair, UNEG and Chief, UNWomen Evaluation Office, and Flaminia Minelli, Evaluation Office, Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights. Webinars are free and open to interested people; you do not need to register in advance.

To read a summary of this event and gain access to the full programme, click here.
 


Please also see the SOUL BEAT AFRICA: Entertainment-Education theme site: Where entertainment-education is central to Africa's social and economic development:

as well as:

The CI Global's Entertainment-Education theme site
and...

Soul Beat Africa's HIV theme site
and...

The CI Global's HIV theme site

Please bookmark these URLs if you like what you see! And contact us at drumbeat@comminit.com if you want to send your HIV/AIDS-related communication for development information to us.

 


Express your opinion and review the opinions of others!

Social and Behavioural Change strategies should focus on...

  • Voice of affected
  • Behaviours of affected
  • Social environment
  • Individual choice
  • Policy Context
  • Other (please comment)


Is there insufficient engagement of people living with HIV/AIDS in policy formulation?


Is a focus on "equity" the best approach to advancing the wellbeing and status of children?
 


Advertise Your Publications through The CI


Does your organisation produce publications or videos for which it charges a price? Please consider marketing your publications online through the Development Classifieds website and e-magazine. Contact jsavidge@comminit.com for assistance or click here.

 


For a more complete summary of "Soul City Institute: Demonstrating Impact on Social and Behaviour Change" on The CI site, please click here.

To access the full presentation directly in PDF format, please click here.
 


This issue of The Drum Beat was written by Kier Olsen DeVries.

 


The Editor of The Drum Beat is Kier Olsen DeVries.

Please send additional project, evaluation, strategic thinking, and materials information on communication for development at any time. Send to drumbeat@comminit.com

The Drum Beat seeks to cover the full range of communication for development activities. Inclusion of an item does not imply endorsement or support by The Partners.

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