Published: 25 July 2019
Last updated: 4 March 2024
Local field workers download the video and help spread the message in their communities.
And the founder, Hagai Avisar, is thinking big: beyond India, the plan is to take the program to all parts of the developing world, where millions of children under the age of five die from preventable illnesses every year.
Mr Avisar says focusing on prevention is an undervalued course of action. “Investment in prevention saves money and lives,” he told The Jewish Independent.
“The problem is: prevention is not as sexy as cure. It’s not as marketable. It is quiet and efficient, and harder to measure the impact.”
In the spirit of taking on challenges that are “not sexy”, Animama’s first video tackles diarrhea. It is the third leading cause of childhood mortality in India, claiming around 300,000 lives per year.
The pilot video has been launched, and immediately received positive feedback from both mothers and health professionals. “Audio-visual messaging attracts and holds attention, and messages sink in faster. It’s minimum visuals for maximum message,” local doctor Dilip Suryavanshi said.
Specifically, the medium of animation has several advantages. For instance, it is an effective way to reach people with poor literacy, and can be dubbed into any language.
Animama plans to produce versions of the pilot in eight regional Indian dialects, each of which has the capacity to reach up to 50 million people.
The script for the second animation, addressing pneumonia prevention, is nearly complete. Plans for animations tackling tetanus, malaria, meningitis, and more, are also in the works.
Hopefully, in time, Animama can help mothers everywhere be empowered with life-saving knowledge.
So support Animama, visit www.animama.org/donate/
