Living goods is an “Avon-like” network of franchised community health promoters who provide health education and earn a living selling essential health products door-to-door at prices affordable to the poor.
Afghan Social Marketing Organization (ASMO)
Afghan Social Marketing Organization (ASMO)
Not-for-profit
Year launched: 2008Existing or expanding (post-pilot)
Approach
Target geography
Target Population
Target income level
- Bottom 20%
- Lower-middle income (20-40%)
- Middle-income (40-60%)
- Higher middle-income (60-80%)
- High-income (80-100%)
Health focus
- Family planning and reproductive health
- Primary care
Summary
ASMO is a social marketing project designed to increase access to and use of quality health products and services by women and children, especially in rural and undeserved areas, by using a variety of media and community outreach campaigns.Program goals
ASMO’s national education, training, and social marketing approaches work to enhance the populations demand for quality health products and social services and thus increase national access to and use of these products and services. ASMO strives to design and implement effective and integrated health and social issues marketing interventions intended to improve the overall well-being of the country’s population while stimulating and increasing private commercial sector participation.
Key program components
ASMO is fully committed to improving the quality of life of Afghans by leveraging collaborations with the public and private sector to engage in the following activities:
- Conducting formative market research
- Product Design and Development
- Marketing communications and out-reach activities
- Training of service providers, community influencers and commercial
- Supply chain partners - Health product repacking & warehousing
- Distribution and field sales activities.
ASMO works in cooperation with the Ministry of Public Health complementing the Government of Afghanistan's public sector efforts in implementing its community based health care program. The following are a overview of ASMO's activities:
Conducting formative market research:ASMO uses this as the basis on which it develops effective communication and intervention strategies for influencing behavior change and for designing, positioning and promoting valued new public health products and services.
Product design and development: ASMO's current health product portfolio includes: temporary contraceptive products for birth spacing, chlorinated safe water solutions and oral rehydration salts.
Health product repacking and warehousing: ASMO's main central warehouse in Kabul serves as the facility for receiving imported USAID-funded bulk contraceptive products. The central warehouse also receives incoming packaging materials to re-package the bulk contraceptive products into branded finished products and maintains the inventory for supplying the five regional field sales offices and warehouse facilities. The project's packaged ORS and chlorine-finished goods inventory comes from our local pharmaceutical partner, KIP.
Marketing, communication and outreach activities: ASMO's combination of mass market messaging, community-based outreach interventions and interpersonal communications capabilities are very effective in helping Afghans make informed choices about products and services available to them. ASMO utilizes a variety of media outlets including billboards, product branding, radio and TV commercials and soap operas, mobile cinemas.
Training of service providers, community influencers and commercial supply chain partners: The organization promotes behavior change in target populations through quality, certified education and training programs designed for both private sector health providers as well as for consumers and influencers at the community level.
Distribution and field sales activities: ASMO's current sales and distribution network is very extensive and efficient. Its sales force and network of national and regional distributors, wholesalers, and retailers were methodically developed to ensure wide distribution of and access to its key health products and services. In 2006, Futures Group became the prime implementing partner for COMPRI-A Project which is the predecessor to ASMO.
Financials
Related Resources:
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