The Communication Initiative
Development action with informed and engaged societies
The Communication Initiative

After nearly 28 years, The Communication Initiative (The CI) Global is entering a new chapter. 

Following a period of transition, the global website has been transferred to the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) in South Africa, where it will be administered by the Social and Behaviour Change Communication Division. Wits' commitment to social change and justice makes it a trusted steward for The CI's legacy and future. 

On the transfer, co-founder Victoria Martin expressed her pleasure to see this work continue under Wits' leadership, knowing that co-founder Warren Feek (1953–2024) would have felt deep pride in The CI Global's Africa-led direction. 

As Wits, we honour the team and partners who sustained The CI for decades and look forward building from that strong base. This includes co-founders Warren Feek (1953-2024) and Victoria Martin as well as La Iniciativa de Comunicación (CILA), which continues independently at lainiciativadecomunicacion.com with links to The CI Global site. We are also eager to forge new partnerships and entertain new ideas as we consider how best to contribute to social and behaviour change in our rapidly evolving environment.

If you are joining the International Social and Behaviour Change Communication (SBCC) Summit in Panama, please join Wits and CILA on Monday, 22 June, to share your thoughts and suggestion for the relaunch of the Communication Initiative. We will be in Pacifica 5 from 12-1:25 for the Refuel, Reflect, and Renew Lunch Series: The Communication Initiative: celebrating a driving force for Communication for Social Change and the way forward. We will reflect on the legacy of Warren Feek and family in creating the Communication Initiative, consider the contributions of CI over the years and then turn our attention towards the future in this dynamic session. 

If you are unable to join us in Panama, we still want to hear from you. Please contribute your thoughts by following this link: https://redcap.link/CommunicationInitiative2026 or reaching out to ci_surveys@commint.com. 

You can also follow the QR Code:

 https://redcap.link/CommunicationInitiative2026

Time to read
less than
1 minute
Print
a- a+
Published 3 years ago
Last updated 2 years ago
Read so far

Community Participation - Reduced Childhood Mortality

0 comments

Strategy researched

Community participation and employment of village health workers to support home-based child care (HBCC) in an impoverished area

Impact achieved

69.28% and 65.78% reduction in the infant mortality rate (IMR) and under-5 mortality rate (U5MR), respectively, in intervention areas (IAs) vs. increases in those rates in control areas. Neonatal mortality rate (NMR) and perinatal mortality rate (PMR) in IAs showed reductions from 50.76 to 22.67 (by 55.34%) and from 75.06 to 24.94 (by 66.77%) respectively. The impact was sustained for 10 years following the trial, compared with the standard of care clusters.

Country of study

India

Research methodology

Cluster RCT

Journal

BMJ Global Health; 2022

Journal paper title and link

Effect of home-based childcare on childhood mortality in rural Maharashtra, India: a cluster randomised controlled trial

Excerpt from Abstract

"The IMR and U5MR in IA were reduced from 106.60 and 147.21 to 32.75 and 50.38 (reduction by 69.28% and 65.78%, respectively) compared with increases in CA [control areas/clusters] from 67.67 and 105.3 to 86.83 and 122.8, respectively, from baseline to end of intervention. NMR and PMR in IA [intervention clusters/areas] showed reductions from 50.76 to 22.67 (by 55.34%) and from 75.06 to 24.94 (by 66.77%) respectively. These gains extended to villages in the service and replication phases."