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Egypt

The Mabrouk Initiative for Newlyweds

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Activity Dates

2003-2007

Activity Summary

The Primary audiences of this booklet are young married men and women, especially newly married and their extended family and friends of young couples. Secondary audiences are health service providers (public and private) and health outreach workers. Key messages will focus on health information for events a new couple is likely to encounter in the course of the first few years of marriage, in support of healthy behavior practices related to communication, the home environment, reproductive health, family planning, pregnancy, postpartum and neonatal care. This book is written in language style compatible with secondary-level education; in such a way that it is clear and directive.
This book is designed to achieve the following communication objectives:

• Promote knowledge and awareness of healthy behaviors.
• Promote adoption of healthy practices among all Life Stage groups.
• Promote efficacy, where clients/consumers adopt stance that health is in their hands, and feel empowered by knowledge of correct behaviors to maintain health of family.
• Harmonize health information disseminated by nurses, health outreach workers, pharmacists, and doctors with nationally-supported health information and messages.
• Maximize the variety of sources disseminating the health messages to increase impact and build trust of families hearing the messages.

Key Sections

1. Preparing for a happy family
2. Thinking About Children
3. You are Pregnant
4. Safe Delivery
5. Caring for New Mother and Baby
6. Lists for Follow-up of Mother and Child

Research Objectives

The main purpose of this formative research is to get clients’ view on the content of this book so as to make it user friendly for these specified target audiences. This pre-testing aims at assessing the level of comprehension and acceptability of various health messages included in this health information book. It will be conducted in two governorates; Minya and Fayoum. This qualitative research will be conducted with representatives of the target groups (newly married) to make sure whether these family health messages are:

• Understandable.
• Culturally acceptable and appropriate.
• Relevant to the target group.

Summative Evaluation

The Mabrouk booklet was distributed to newlywed couples throughout Egypt by health outreach workers, maazouns (muslim marriage registrars) and priests. Several hundred thousand copies have also been distributed as inserts in popular magazines and at CHL Newlywed Celebration publicity events. Newlywed Celebrations are lively events, based on an Egyptian custom of group wedding receptions, where the families and friends of multiple newlywed couples join in one large event and share in the festivities—and costs. An evening dinner and social event, held in December 2005, brought together 63 of the 150 couples who had participated in the first Newlywed Celebration held in El Minya governorate in September 2004. The CHL project has continued to engage these couples in village-level health interventions as they begin their family life. The room was filled with beaming parents holding their healthy first-born children, as well as couples preparing for their first child. The governor expressed his pride in the young couples for being healthy role models. Magdy Fouad of Upper Egypt's Channel 7 MC'ed the events, interacting with the young couples with quizzes and prizes based on the Mabrouk! booklet. Mr. Fouad is producing a one-hour show featuring couples that are a part of this initiative, as is Youth and Sports Radio. When a young couple was asked if they were using the Mabrouk! booklet, the wife replied, "Using it? We're living it!" The booklet continues to be in high demand around the country, and is proving to be a valuable tool in attracting sponsors interested in reaching the same target audience. Research among users has clearly shown that women exposed to the Mabrouk! booklet are more likely to have positive family planning and family health attitudes and intentions.

Materials and Tools

Title: [Mabrouk : The family's health and happiness] Booklet (English translation of Booklet )

Back to Egypt

Note about materials: Some of the materials and resources listed on each page are available in their full form, others are represented by image or citation only. For more information and resources, go to www.jhuccp.org