CTAP vs. COVID-19: Changing Community Mindsets in Innovative Ways
Fireside Chat Event Recap & Reflection
What do social media, soccer, and dance have in common? These collaborative activities have been reimagined as innovative methods of combating misinformation associated with the pandemic. Our COVID-19 Transparency and Accountability Project (CTAP) partners in Kenya, Malawi, and Ghana have used these strategies to break the barriers of communicating across different communities in their countries, especially with young people.
We sat down for an all-women panel with the CTAP country leads for a fireside chat to hear about what they are doing about vaccine fraud, religious obstacles, and persistent misinformation. Innovative interventions are making strides against these challenges with various approaches, such as mobilizing communities at the local level, running effective social media campaigns and community radio programs, and holding officials accountable for the lack of adequate response.
Partnerships at all levels are critical for the validity and sustainability of the fight against COVID-19 and other health challenges. National governments sometimes lack the capacity or legitimacy to combat misinformation and fraud, which is why community-level collaboration is very important to make strides in these areas.
Partnerships at all levels are critical for the validity and sustainability of the fight against COVID-19 and other health challenges. National governments sometimes lack the capacity or legitimacy to combat misinformation and fraud, which is why community-level collaboration is very important to make strides in these areas.
Having direct insights from the communities through the town halls has made a huge difference for the advancement of COVID-related healthcare issues.
Typically, complex data sets, policies, and legal frameworks are not relatable to an average citizen. Thus, CTAP partners have been working with local community and religious leaders to reach more people, especially in more rural areas. The town halls have enabled people to voice their concerns and bring them back to the Ministry of Health with greater amplification.
Complex public policies can be obscure, so simplified communication is a key remedy. BudgIT Ghana utilizes infographics, blogs, and dance to spread the message and inspire change. Considering that some communities got through the pandemic through their own means, they have doubted the need for vaccines and the existence of COVID-19 itself. Making key information accessible helps to combat misinformation in positive ways that are easy to share.
The speakers zoomed in on the common challenges and applauded each other for sharing transferable insights and innovative approaches like the community soccer matches, which build camaraderie and trust. When the message gets muddled with complex data or politics, it’s hard to get across, so light-touch interventions like soccer help with getting it across and reaching health goals.
While many issues remain, such as transportation of vaccines to remote areas and holding corrupt officials who siphoned emergency funds to account, they go beyond the ongoing pandemic response as they are linked to the underlying healthcare system challenges across the African continent.
To continue the fight for better and more transparent healthcare, the partners are using evidence-based advocacy, augmenting community voices to the national stage, and strengthening the common threads across the CTAP network. COVID-19 exposed the weaknesses of the healthcare system, but also provided an opportunity to improve it with better engagement between governments, CSOs, and grassroots communities.
