MINISTRY OF PUBLIC HEALTH AFGHANISTAN | IMMUNITY CHARM | 2017
Why the Judges Called It the "Ultimate Wearable" / Ministry of Public Health Afghanistan "IMMUNITY CHARM"
When I heard a beaded bracelet won the Grand Prix, I didn't quite get it at first. But the judges called it the "ultimate wearable," and eight of the top ten entries that year were this one piece of work.
The problem
In Afghanistan, only about 50% of children complete their vaccinations. Parents don't keep vaccination cards, so doctors have no way to track a child's history. Combined with low literacy rates and deep-rooted distrust of vaccines, diseases rarely seen in developed countries were still taking children's lives.
The insight
Afghanistan has a tradition of putting a bracelet on a baby's wrist to ward off evil spirits. The idea of "protecting against bad things" is, in a way, exactly what vaccination already is. Instead of trying to change the culture, they simply reinterpreted the belief that was already there.
The idea
Health workers give newborns this bracelet, and every time the child gets vaccinated, a bead in a color matched to that vaccine gets added. Measles, polio, diphtheria — each color builds up on the wrist as proof of protection. It's a record that works even if you can't read.
What happened
At Cannes Lions Health, it won a record four Gold, four Silver, and one Bronze, plus the Grand Prix for Good. Over the following year it went on to win six more Grand Prix awards, a D&AD Black Pencil, and a Grand Clio. The government decided to roll it out to other provinces as well.
Afterthought
In a year when VR and AI were the big talk, what won were colored beads. This was the moment an ad stopped being an "announcement" and became a "system" instead. Rather than imposing what's "correct" from the outside, it worked with a belief people already held. And that saved lives. I'm kind of tearing up a little.
Awards
- Cannes Lions Grand Prix 2017
