Afghanistan Social Marketing Organization Health Product Distribution Coverage Monitoring Survey
Title: Afghanistan Social Marketing Organization Health Product Distribution Coverage Monitoring Survey
Principal Investigators: Afghanistan Social Marketing Organization, Soumitra Ghosh, Sarah Bradley, Phoebe Sloane
Timeline: Round 1 (2017); Round 2 (2018)
Background:
Afghanistan suffers from some of the worst health indicators in the world mainly due to enduring more than 30 years of internal conflict. However, over the last decade, Afghanistan has achieved improved health trends and increasing uptake of priority public health products and services. Despite these improvements, much more work remains. For example, 20 percent of currently married women reported using a modern family planning method in 2015 – the lowest in the region. Similarly, the child mortality rate in Afghanistan was estimated in 2015 at 97 per 1,000 live births – the highest in the region. SHOPS Plus supports the ASMO to market and distribute a variety of health products, including child health and family planning products. This survey measures the availability and accessibility of family planning and child health products on an annual basis, both ASMO and non-ASMO brands, in ASMO’s six supervision areas.
Objectives/research questions:
The survey objectives are to:
- Assess product availability for oral contraceptives, injectable contraceptives, condoms, oral rehydration salts, and water purification tablets and solution, both ASMO and non-ASMO brands
- Assess product visibility and access for ASMO brands of oral contraceptives, injectable contraceptives, condoms, oral rehydration salts, and water purification tablets and solution
Methods:
The study uses Lot Quality Assurance Sampling to estimate health product availability, and accessibility. ASMO randomly selects a small sample of market centers in each of its six supervision areas. In all outlets in each market center, data collectors gather information on product availability, frequency of stock outs, presence of ASMO brand promotional materials, and outlet characteristics. Outlets include pharmacies, general stores, and grocery stores.
ASMO uses this information to inform its marketing and distribution strategies and to direct its resources towards improvements in areas with lower product availability and accessibility. This survey will be repeated on an annual basis in order to continuously monitor product availability and accessibility and to inform ASMO’s program management decisions. ASMO leads these surveys with technical assistance from SHOPS Plus.
Relevant Resources:
Status: Round 1 and 2 completed
Last updated: October 2020
Learn more about our work in Afghanistan and pharmaceutical partnerships and social marketing, family planning, and child health.