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WASHINGTON, DC, Feb. 11, 2003 — The Voice of America has started airing a year-long series of radio messages and dramas in Afghanistan that will enable Afghan parents to protect their children from diarrhea, one of the leading killers of Afghan children. The campaign was designed by PSI with funding from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). The radio campaign is the first part of a $1.4 million health communication program funded by USAID to combat common but life-threatening childhood illnesses, particularly diarrhea. The project is being implemented by PSI and the CATALYST Consortium led by Pathfinder International. The messages and dramas are now airing in both Dari and Pashto, the two principal languages of Afghanistan. The messages developed by PSI promote an increase in consumption of fluids during diarrhea episodes and hand-washing. VOA, which broadcasts a total of 12 hours of Pashto and Dari every day, expects to air approximately 42 messages and one drama per week. The messages and dramas are also airing on 17 local radio stations. "We are grateful to the Voice of America for donating air time in order to transmit these potentially life-saving messages to Afghan parents, " said PSI President Richard A. Frank. "The restoration of Afghan children to good health after years of neglect is a vital part of the reconstruction process." Seventy percent of male heads of households in Afghanistan listens to radio at least once a week, according to surveys by Intermedia. Surveys also suggest that radio is reaching women. "Our broadcasts in Dari and Pashto are a staple of households
throughout Afghanistan," said VOA South and Central Asia Chief
Moazzam Siddiqi. "They have long been a trusted source of unbiased
news for Afghan families, and we are delighted that they are now providing
vital information on this disease which has killed so many Afghan children." The goal is to reduce infant and child mortality in Afghanistan through prevention and treatment of diarrhea. A main objective is to increase adult practices that result in better management of diarrhea diseases among children, and practices on the part of all family members that prevent pathogen transmission and result in a reduced number of diarrhea episodes. Later this year, PSI also plans to launch a safe water treatment system that is already preventing millions of cases of diarrhea in other countries in Asia and Africa. In Afghanistan, 20 percent of children under three are reported to have had diarrhea within the last two weeks. Many of the diarrhea episodes are managed in a manner that exacerbates dehydration and malnutrition. For example, 25 percent of children were given less or no liquid during the last episode and 50 percent were given less or no food. Infant mortality in Afghanistan is 165 per 1,000 live births, the third highest in the world, compared to seven in the U.S. More than one in four children die before the age of five. The project will disseminate health information that promotes life-saving practices in the homes and communities of Afghanistan through a mix of mass media, especially radio, and interpersonal communication. A particular emphasis will be made on reaching the many Afghan women who are homebound, through expansion of the existing network of female community health workers. These interventions can be expected to have a significant health impact in a short time. Individually, each intervention has proven to contribute to significant reductions in childhood deaths. But rarely have these been promoted together in a closely coordinated way. VOA, which first went on the air on February 24, 1942, is a multimedia broadcaster funded by the U.S. government. VOA broadcasts more than 1,000 hours of news, information, educational and cultural programming every week to a worldwide audience of 94 million people. Programs are broadcast in English and 52 other languages. |
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