Afghanistan

SHOPS Plus supports the Afghan Social Marketing Organization (ASMO), a leading non-governmental organization that promotes maternal and child health and family planning, in strengthening their impact and sustainability. The organization’s contribution to health in Afghanistan is significant. According to an analysis by the project, about 22 percent of women using modern contraceptives used products marketed by ASMO. Additionally, between 5 and 20 percent of users purchased ASMO’s oral rehydration salts, water treatment solutions, or iron supplement products.

Using a total market approach, SHOPS Plus's activities are aimed at increasing the geographic availability of ASMO’s products and decreasing gender barriers to access, increasing the reach and cost effectiveness of ASMO’s marketing efforts, and strengthening ASMO’s internal processes and systems to make it a more attractive investment to donors.

SHOPS Plus and ASMO have improved provider quality through training and detailing private sector providers on FP and MCH. By improving provider technical knowledge around areas such as eligibility criteria, side-effects and their management, and contraindications, providers are better able address client concerns, reduce prevalent myths and misconceptions and provide quality care.

Highlights from the activity from December 2016 through September 2020:

• Provided over 967,170 couple years of protection through contraceptive sales, supported the disinfection of nearly 300,000,000 liters of drinking water and treatment of over 1,925,000 diarrheal episodes
• Reached over 9,500,000 people with targeted messages via social media and nearly 1,070,000 beneficiaries through various social and behavior change activities.
• Launched six new products: iron folic acid tablets to address anemia in pregnant women in a new cost-efficient packaging, two strengths of Aquatabs water purification tablets for household water treatment, progestin only pills to expand contraceptive options available in the private market, chlorhexidine gel for maternal and newborn child health, and Sprinkles nutrition supplements.
• Conducted over 750 private provider detailing visits across Kabul and the 4 main urban provinces