report to dfid on voter education voter... · web viewa total of eight meetings with local...

Report to DFID on Voter Education

Strengthening Electoral & Legislative Processes (UNDP Pakistan)

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DFID Programme/Project no. 204-604-106

Submission Date: March 2016

Table of ContentsEXECUTIVE SUMMARY..............................................................................................................3

INTRODUCTION.............................................................................................................................7

COMMUNITY BASED ENGAGEMENT.................................................................................16

BROADCAST AND PRINT MEDIA........................................................................................43

OUTDOOR MEDIA.......................................................................................................................53

DIGITAL MEDIA...........................................................................................................................64

VALUE FOR MONEY..................................................................................................................72

LESSONS LEARNED..................................................................................................................74

Annexures

Annex 1: UNDP Field Reports

Annex 2: CSO Reports

Annex 3: Media Reports

Annex 4: Material Distribution Data

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This report details and analyses the effectiveness of the voter education activities undertaken by UNDP under the grant provided by the UK Government’s Conflict Stability and Security Fund (CSSF). Each aspect of the campaign is assessed in terms of value for money, the efficacy of media and dissemination channels that were chosen to reach target audiences, and the relevance and impact of campaign messages. The final section maps out a series of lessons learned to inform future programming, and outlines administrative and legal reforms that need to be introduced in order to remove the barriers that exist which prevent women from exercising their basic democratic right of participating in elections.

The data informing the assessment, which is detailed in this document, is drawn from various sources: UNDP field monitoring reports during the campaign period; weekly, interim and final reports submitted by civil society partners conducting community based engagement activities; and reports submitted by our media partners. Copies of all of these reports can be found in the Annexes attached to this document.

At the time of writing, the, the voter turnout figures for Punjab, and the gender disaggregated figures from the local government elections in Sindh, have yet to be published, despite the fact that the elections were held over three months ago. As such, it is not possible at this stage to use gender disaggregated turnout data from the 2013 general elections as a rudimentary baseline for comparative analysis. While the publication of gender disaggregated turnout figures, broken down by district, will provide a useful indicator of the campaign’s effectiveness (especially in districts which had less than 45% turnout among women in the 2013 general elections), it is important to also recognize that this indicator, on its own, is insufficient as a measure of campaign performance, and impact.

Elections are complex, and local elections even more so. Motivation to vote in elections is influenced by a myriad of factors and as such it would be problematic to try and establish a direct correlation, or cause and effect dynamic, between our intervention and changes in the patterns of women’s turnout in Punjab and Sindh. Voter education is critical to increasing voter turnout among women, as the data from our post-campaign assessments demonstrate, but so too are prevailing security conditions in local communities, the appeal of local candidates, the attitude of community elders towards the concept of women voting, and

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the resonance of policy platforms and campaign promises propagated by political parties.

Given the range of independent variables that have an impact on turnout levels, any analysis of the effectiveness of voter education campaigns, especially one which lasted for approximately two months, needs to broaden the aperture for measuring its success beyond simply increases in turnout in target districts. As such, measures of effectiveness need to look at: the efficacy of communications channels that were chosen to reach target audiences; levels of engagement with campaign messages among those who came into contact with the messages; the cultural relevance of campaign activities, especially in conservative, rural areas; qualitative insights into the potential for campaign messages to gradually change hardwired male attitudes towards women voting; vindication of the theory of change in terms of evidence that points to appetite and demand for a similar programming intervention, on a broader scale, over a longer timeframe; and value for money.

This report measures the campaign’s success against this broad spectrum of impact indicators. It therefore provides an analytical performance narrative that is anchored in a broad context so that assessments of what the campaign achieved, and the impact it had, can be judged through a multi-dimensional lens, and not one which is limited to a comparative analysis of women turnout figures between two different elections.1

While the implementation period for the campaign was over a two month period (from 1st October – 5th December 2015), UNDP, given the short timeframe between the submission of the proposal and the elections, decided to move ahead with procurement processes in mid-August to ensure that all procurement would be completed in the event that the proposal submitted was approved. Consequently, UNDP was able to begin implementation of activities as soon as official approval was communicated in writing from DFID. UNDP also used existing resources to front-load all activities to ensure no delay in implementation.

Strategic Approach

For the purposes of this campaign, the strategy was constructed around two core objectives: diminishing male resistance to women voting, and increasing awareness among women on how to vote, and why voting is important. In the context of Pakistan, campaigns which are aimed at increasing voter turnout among women have to include men as a primary 1 Again this is not to say that such an analysis is not relevant. It is and when official turnout out figures are available UNDP will submit an addendum to this report containing an analysis of women’s turnout patterns in the context of the programme intervention undertaken with the support of the CSSF grant.

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target audience if they are to be effective. In conservative rural areas, spreading awareness among women on the importance of voting will have little effect if such efforts are not matched by simultaneous initiatives designed to address male opposition to women voting.

In the target districts identified for this campaign (i.e. districts which had less than 45% women turnout in the 2013 General Elections), men were targeted in equal measure to women. This is why focusing on gender disaggregated data to ascertain the number of women reached through campaign efforts, while important, also risks overlooking the importance of males as a critical target audience for the purposes of this campaign. The need to reach both audiences in target districts with customized messages influenced the type of media channels that were selected, and the frequency with which they were used.

For implementation, the strategy was sequenced in four periods (these are described in detail in the main body of this report) with specific messages designed for each phase and different types of media used. For example, TV and SMS were not used until Periods 3 and 4. The intent was to gradually kindle a motivation to vote among women through a series of messages carrying different content. Among men, the aim was to incrementally make them question ‘what their family and community gains’ by not allowing women to vote.

To enhance recall among target audiences, ensure consistency, and promote a basic understanding of what people will be voting for on Election Day, a standardized logo appeared on all products (developed in collaboration with the Election Commission of Pakistan)–an image of a female hand casting a vote in a ballot box with a tick mark next to it, signifying the importance of women voting.

Performance and Impact

Over a two month period and with a budget of £900,123, UNDP’s voter education initiatives reached an estimated 17 million people. 6.33 million2 people were reached through radio; 1.9 million people were reached through SMS and Voicemail; and 3.3 million people were targeted through Information, Education and Communications materials (IEC) – posters, flyers, wristbands and stickers. Over 142,000 people (out of which 78500 were women) at the grassroots were directly engaged through community based activities across 1001 union councils in 16 districts. In addition, 2 Gender disaggregated data is not available for radio listenership as stations do not collect such data in Pakistan at present. For TV, viewership data is not available. However, for both radio and television, channels were chosen on the basis of media consumption habits among our target audience – men and women in target districts in Punjab and Sindh.

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billboard adverts containing the campaign’s core messages were prominent across Punjab and Sindh and transit media was also used to ensure an innovative mix of media channels were used to optimize impact.

For each activity UNDP took steps to ensure value for money in terms of cost and the number of people reached. For example, the production and broadcast of 13,718 radio spots, and subsequently reaching over 6 million people, cost £29,511. Direct engagement in remote, conservative and insecure areas using the medium of street theatre cost £69,272 and enabled direct interaction with 42,536 people of which 22.375 were women. As in political campaigns, there is no substitute for direct, face-to-face engagement with target audiences.

One of the reasons why we believe we had a significant impact was due to the multi-media approach that was adopted to ensure messages reached target audiences. While the research indicates that community based engagement through civil society partners was one of the most successful aspects of the campaign, other mediums that were used to optimize reach were also successful. The World Food Programme (WFP) disseminated material through its food distribution centres; the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) used its local partners; The Election Commission of Pakistan (process poster), FAFEN (Free and Fair Elections Network) and National Youth Assembly leveraged their networks; and the CSOs hired to conduct grassroots activities, and additional CSOs in their other programs, also disseminated material. A matrix detailing the volume of material distributed in each district can be found in Annex 4.

The challenge post-elections is to maintain the momentum that the campaign contributed to and to sustain programming designed to remove the information, cultural, legal and administrative barriers which continue to prevent women from fully exercising their democratic rights in Pakistan.

Key Campaign Numbers

Est. people reached in Punjab and Sindh

Printed VE Material 3,300,000Radio 6,330,000Street Theatre 42,536Face to Face (CSOs) 99,150Newspaper 6,662,346

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SMS 1,049,519Voice Calls 848,596Total 18,332,147

Additional components without verified viewership data

Transit Media

# of Vehicles 300

TV # Spots 105Billboards # Billboards 85

INTRODUCTIONIn September 2015, the UK Government’s Department for International Development approved a UNDP proposal to educate women in Punjab and Sindh to participate in the Local Government Elections. The theory of change is anchored in a belief that increasing women’s turnout will strengthen the legitimacy of the local bodies being elected and will enhance the prospects for more inclusive local governance arrangements to emerge post-elections – a vital component to promoting stabilization in Punjab and Sindh.

Given the short time frame between submission of the proposal and Election Day, UNDP moved ahead with ensuring all procurement processes were completed in the event that the proposal was approved. We also used existing resources to front-load all activities to ensure no delay in implementation.

The first part of the report outlines the campaign strategy that was developed. Subsequent chapters provide narrative accounts of each medium used to engage target audiences, the number of people reached

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(disaggregated by gender, where such data is available3) and assessments on performance, impact and value for money.

The final section provides an overview of Implications of Future Programming. CAMPAIGN STRATEGY

To be effective, voter education initiatives need to be informed by a coherent communications strategy that is focused on achieving a series of emotional and cognitive effects through messaging efforts. In essence, the strategy needs to be analogous to that of a political campaign, incrementally building a narrative among target audiences that is emotionally resonant. Too many voter education campaigns fail to have an impact because the emphasis is on the operational rather than the strategic.

Ensuring a high volume information flow is important, but it is how people engage with the message that matters. The information has to resonate, it needs to have an emotional appeal. Thus message design needs to take time. Anyone who has worked on a political campaign will know it is not what you say, it is what people hear that matters. Based on this understanding and experience of conducting strategic communications campaigns, UNDP, prior to dissemination, tested all messages in Urdu, Seraiki and Sindhi and modified them based on the feedback received.

For the purposes of this campaign, the strategy was constructed around two core objectives:

1. Diminish male resistance to women voting2. Increasing awareness among women on how to vote and why voting

is important.

For implementation, the strategy was sequenced in four periods (these are described in more detail in the following section), with specific messages designed for each period and different types of media used. For example, TV and SMS were not used until Periods 3 and 4. The intent was to gradually kindle a motivation to vote among women through a series of messages carrying different content. Among men, the aim was to make them question ‘what their family and community gains’ by not allowing women to vote. The section below elaborates on this approach.

3 Gender disaggregated data is not available for radio listenership as stations do not collect such data in Pakistan at present. For TV, viewership data is not available. However, for both radio and television, channels were chosen on the basis of estimates of female listenership and viewership – i.e. channels which broadcast content that regularly appeals to a female audience.

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To enhance recall among target audiences, ensure consistency, and promote a basic understanding of what people will be voting for on election day, a standardized logo appeared on all products – an image of a female hand casting a vote in a ballot box with a tick mark next to it. Message Dissemination: A Multi-Media Approach

To optimize reach and impact, a broad, innovative, multi-media approach was developed4. For the dissemination of IEC material, we used organizations that were a) assessed to have the ability to reach target audiences and b) who we could monitor effectively to ensure material had been distributed. The final mix used ensured distribution networks across districts in Sindh and Punjab.

The World Food Programme (WFP) disseminated material through its food distribution centres; the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) used its local partners; The Election Commission of Pakistan (process poster), FAFEN (Free and Fair Elections Network) and National Youth Assembly leveraged their networks; and the CSOs hired to conduct grassroots activities, and additional CSOs in their other programs, also disseminated material. To amplify the messaging at the grassroots, radio products were developed for each period of the campaign. A total of 13,718 radio spots were broadcast. Two TV Adverts was produced and broadcast for the final two days of the campaign to support the ‘Get-Out-The-Vote’ dimension. SMS bursts were also used during the final two days of the campaign.

In remote areas with little media penetration, UNDP partnered with local NGOs with established local networks, to conduct community based voter education activities and communicate core messages. Each partner was responsible for a specific geographical region to ensure all districts across the province were covered. PERIOD 1 (Awareness):

During this period simple messages were communicated to put the local government elections on people’s radar. There were no motivation or process messaging, simply some basic facts about what services local government will be responsible for The messages were communicated through radio, flyers and street theatres. The core radio message was broadcast in Urdu, Seraiki and Sindhi.

PHASE ONE (AWARENESSMedium Quantity MessageFlyers 243,400 LGEs in Punjab/Sindh coming

4 The term media is defined in its broadest sense to include all activities involving communication with target audiences, including face-to-face engagement at the grassroots.

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soon. Learn more about what they mean for you/family/community. Visit your nearest DEC office for more information

Radio 860 Spots

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PERIOD 2 (Engagement)

Messaging effects in PERIOD 1 were focused on generating the cognitive effect of a) awareness that the local government elections were taking place and b) what people would be voting for in terms of the services that will be the responsibility of local government bodies. The focus on local government functions was critical as anecdotal evidence indicated that many people were confused about the functions of local government, compared to the provincial and federal government.

PERIOD 2 messaging shifted gear, with a stronger emphasis on both cognitive and emotional effects. The intent was to kindle motivation to vote as well as to provide information on how to vote on Election Day by providing step by step information on what to do at the polling station.

In terms of motivational messaging, four flyers/posters were designed (2 for Punjab and 2 for Sindh - see below) aimed at making both men and women think about why voting matters. All messaging invoked the theme, ‘voting will help you and your community’. It was consciously anchored in the family and community context. We wanted people to make the clear link between voting, their family’s welfare, and community development. For men, we extended this line of argument to encourage them to think about the rationale of not allowing women in their family to vote.

The messaging was designed to appeal to their self-interest and concern about the state of their local communities and the impact it is having on their family. The basic take-away was ‘if you are concerned and want to improve your community what do you gain by not allowing women in your family to vote? If you have a preferred candidate, who you think will do some good, then why not optimize the chances of this person winning by encouraging women in your family to vote for their person as well.’

On the cognitive side, process posters were developed that visually mapped out a step by step guide to voting on Election Day. The information provided was vital to helping diminish one of the key barriers to women voting – lack of understanding on how to vote. There is little point motivating women to vote if they are unable to participate in the electoral process due to lack understanding on how to vote. This aspect of our messaging was designed to plug this gap.

To intensify the flow of information to target audiences, and amplify core messages, billboard adverts and transit media were deployed, wristbands and stickers disseminated and community based activities conducted at the grassroots, including street theatres (these activities are described in more detail in the following section).

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PERIOD TWO (ENGAGEMENT): Medium Quantity MessagesFlyers 907,000 Men

Is your family concerned about issues in your local community? If so, make sure all your voices are heard – vote in the upcoming LGE. The change you want cannot be achieved if only you vote – make sure your wives, sisters etc. strengthen the power of your vote by casting their own votes.

For the sake of your children’s future, encourage your wives to vote for a better life in the LGEs. Every vote counts.

Women What do you gain by not

voting? Change can only happen if you actively engage. Make your voice heard

Your vote matters – have your say in how your community is run

Want solutions to problems in your local community? Vote in the LGE

Process Messages Different types of ballots; documents needed to vote, what to do on E-Day, how to cast your vote etc.

Posters 1,248,525Radio 7640Wristbands/Stickers/Paper cups

535,000/400,000/200,000

Transit Media/Billboards

300/85

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Phase 2 - IEC Material Focusing on Engagement (English version, Urdu original)

Phase 2 - IEC Material Poster of the Polling Process (English version, Urdu original)

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Phase 2 - IEC Material Focusing on Engagement (English version, Sindhi & Urdu original)

Phase 2 - IEC Material Poster of the Polling Process (English version, Sindhi & Urdu original)

These stickers were the most popular items in the campaign

PERIOD 3 (Final Call) & PERIOD 4 (Action) / Get-Out-The-Vote

In political campaigns, the final 48 hours are focused on ‘get-out-the-vote’ style messages. We adopted a similar approach for Periods 3 and 4 and communicated messages that were designed to convert women from ‘interested’ voters into ‘active’ voters. The messages were communicated over a 36-hour period through 15-second radio adverts, TV adverts, SMS and voice messages. The messaging intensity in such a short-time frame was intended to ‘give an extra push’ at a time when the elections would be the dominant issue in local communities. By referencing ‘time frames’ in the messaging and using phrases such as I am going to go cast my vote. You should also cast your vote for the betterment and development of your community I?” the intent was to dial-up the emotional intensity of the message over the course of 36 hours and encourage people to question what is to be gained by staying at home and not voting. We wanted them to be anxious about the possibility of missing out on an opportunity to help improve their local community.

PERIOD THREE (FINAL CALL)Medium Quantity MessagesRadio 2,354 Spots Don’t wait five more years to have

a say in how your community is run – VOTE on SATURDAY

Make your voice count – Vote on Saturday

SMS 1,049,519Voice Messages

848,596

Documentary 53

PHASE FOUR (ACTION): 30 May – Election DayMedium Quantity MessagesRadio 2,864 Spots Today are LGEs. I am going to

vote. You should also cast your vote.

After midday – Today are LGEs. I voted. Did you also vote?

Your community needs you. Vote today in the LGE

Voice Message 848,596SMS 1,049,519

Documentary 52

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COMMUNITY BASED ENGAGEMENT It was important that women in remote areas of Punjab and Sindh were reached through the voter education campaign. Hence, the campaign was designed to include a community based engagement component. This enabled us to also focus on districts where women’s turnout is traditionally very low. Micro-credit grants were awarded to six local civil society organizations with track records of conducting community based activities. During the call for proposal stage, AZM Foundation was the only civil society organization that had applied to conduct activities in South Punjab. Therefore, UNDP was faced with the option of restarting the procurement process, which would have resulted in a significant delay considering the fixed date for the elections.

While the CSO selected may have lacked specific thematic expertise in core aspects of democratic governance programming, UNDP’s perspective is that developing the capacity at the grassroots, specifically with regards to promoting civic literacy, is fundamentally important. This organization had conducted grassroots engagement activities in the region, but had no direct voter education experience.

Consequently, post elections, this CSO now has the expertise in voter education and can thus, be used again in future to scale up similar initiatives across South Punjab - an area of Pakistan, where voter registration, voter turnout and civic literacy, especially among women, is comparatively low.

Global Education Economic and Social Empowerment (GEESE) covered the geographical locations of districts Bhakkar and DG Khan in South West and West Punjab. AZM Foundation covered the districts of Bahawalpur and Multan in South Punjab. Aurat Foundation covered the districts of Larkana and Dadu in North and West Sindh. PAHEL Pakistan operated in districts Shikarpur and Qamber Shadadkot in North Sindh and Sindh Radiant Organization covered districts Jamshoro and Thatta in West and South Sindh. Community Healthy Advocacy Network At Nation (CHANAN) conducted street theatre performances in districts Gujrat, Hafizabad and Jhelum in North Punjab and in districts Jacobabad, Kashmore and Badin in North and South Sindh.

Innovative activities were conducted to improve the knowledge of participants, beyond what they might receive from a radio, television, billboard, transit, voice or SMS message. The grass roots engagement also provided invaluable qualitative insights into some of the barriers to women voting that are often shaped by specific dynamics in each local community.

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The combined efforts of all organisations involved in these initiatives resulted in activities being conducted in 1001 union councils in 16 districts, reaching an estimated 142,000 people of which 78,500 were women.

Inception Phase

Prior to field deployment, UNDP arranged a one-day orientation workshop for the management and staff of the selected civil society organizations in order to generate an understanding of voter education, the point and purpose of the campaign, what was expected of them and reporting and monitoring requirements. Following the orientation workshop, UNDP worked with the organizations to develop activity wise work plans. A messaging guide was developed by UNDP and shared with each CSO partner. The intent was to ensure messaging consistency through all activities. Field Monitoring

During the implementation of the activities in the field, UNDP staff maintained a close liaison with the CSOs on the ground. The partner CSOs provided weekly reports, interim and final reports of their activities and we intervened occasionally to keep activities on track, and in line with the objectives of the campaign.

Remote monitoring was complemented with field spot checks. UNDP deployed three monitoring teams simultaneously to spot check and monitor activities conducted by the CSOs. The team also observed IEC material distribution and its use in the project districts.

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Map of Punjab - CSO & Street Theatre Coverage

Global Education Economic and Social Empowerment

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Map of Sindh - CSO & Street Theatre Coverage

Global Educational, Economic and Social Empowerment (GEESE) is a non-profit organization that aims to organize, educate and empower communities to promote and develop leadership for social transformation. It aims to bring about social justice, economic growth, sustainability and self-reliance. They have implemented projects in multiple sectors including education, democracy and human rights.

GEESE reached 27,754 people of which 7,927 were women in districts Bhakkar and DG Khan. They implemented activities in each union council; 64 union councils of district Bhakkar and 98 union councils of district DG Khan. Male audiences were also targeted to encourage them to think about how their families and communities can gain by allowing women in their households to vote.

The activities included revitalization of Citizens Voter Groups, orientation sessions of these groups, orientation of groups to communities, workshops with local community based organizations, seminars and speech competitions with youth, and media briefing on topics related to women’s participation in the electoral process. These activities were aimed at raising awareness about women’s right to vote, the importance of women voting, voting procedures at the polling station, and the number of ballot papers. Revitalization and Orientation of Citizens Voter Groups (CVG)

One CVG was revitalized in each union council consisting of 6 people each based on a set criteria. These 6 people included a woman (housewife), a teacher, a local leader, a religious leader, a youth and an activist. GEESE conducted orientation sessions with the groups. These groups then sensitized communities on the importance of women voting and the importance of mobilizing women to participate in the electoral processes. They held community meetings and seminars to for this purpose. CVG Sessions with Communities

Each CVG member held an awareness session with 25 people. These 25 people held further sessions with community members and encouraged them to spread the core messages.

Awareness Workshops with Local Community Based Organizations

One day workshops with community based organizations were conducted in each district. The objective was to build an understanding of the importance of women voting, discuss barriers to women voting, the role and responsibilities of communtiy based organizations, and to develop an

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action plan. Each community based organization was tasked to conduct session with 25 participants. Seminars and Speech Competitions with youth

In consultation and coordination with District authorities, seminars and speech competitions were conducted with youth. Students were guided on preparing a speech and were given topics. They were also asked to spread the core messages in their respective communities. Media Briefings

Media briefings were held at the district level, which focused on the importance of voting, especially women voting in the local government elections. These briefings were held to support field activities and disseminate key messages by print media.

UNDP IEC material was distributed among participants at each activity held and participants were encouraged to paste the flyers and posters outside shops and other prominent places in their local communities.

The table below shows the type of field activities conducted by GEESE and a gender breakdown of people reached:-

Sr. No. Activities

Participants

Bhakkar D G Khan Total

M F M F M F

1

Revitalization of Citizen’s Voter Groups (CVGs) at UC Level on “Voter Education to Diminish Barriers to Women Voting in Local Government Elections”

332 52 392 196 724 248

2Orientation session for Citizen’s Voter Groups (CVGs) at UC Level on Voter Education

327 51 392 196 729 247

3 Community sessions by CVG at UC/ward level on Voter Education 8360 168

39498

5254

17858 6937

4 Seminar and Speech Competition with Youth 271 331 17

5 164 446 495

5 Workshops with Local CBOs 16 3 14 5 30 86 Media Briefings 15 0 16 1 31 1

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Performance Assessment – GEESE

GEESE was selected by UNDP based on its experience of conducting community based activities in districts Bhakkar and DG Khan. They completed all of the activities in the work plan in a timely fashion. They reached 27,754 people of which 7,927 were women, in 162 union councils of districts Bhakkar and DG Khan. GEESE reported progress to UNDP on a weekly basis and also provided interim and final project reports. They did face some challenges (see bullets below) in implementing activities, but managed to overcome these challenges.Challenges

Below are the challenges faced by GEESE:-

The districts are dominated by specific cultural dynamics i.e. gender sensitivity, male dominance and limited female mobility. Hence, separate sessions were held with men and women to maintain and respect the cultural norm.

It was difficult to gather community members as they were busy with farming and their daily routine. However, GEESE did manage to conduct all activities.

Accessibility to remote areas in the district was challenging and proved to be difficult to reach by project staff, other stakeholders and beneficiaries. Also, the population was scattered. However, GEESE staff did reach venues and conducted activities.

There were security concerns in some areas due to religious extremism and terrorism. Hence, activities were conducted in day light and staff returned before sunset. Also, GEESE had a No Objection Certificate to avoid any issues with local authorities.

Pre-Election Monitoring

UNDP deployed field teams to monitor the activities of GEESE in both districts. The teams attended a session with local CBOs through Social Welfare Department in Bhakkar, two women voter awareness sessions at Bartoowala and Dhanotar wala and one youth awareness session at Kotla Ahmad Khan in D G Khan. The monitoring team met with GEESE staff in Bhakkar and suggested the following recommendations and improvements:-

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Proper placement of IEC material Better venue for conducting sessions Inform target groups in advance of proposed community activity Improve skills of local social organizers for effective communication

Participant Quotes

“I have been casting vote for last 13 years on the direction of my male family members. I did not know the importance of vote, but just piece of paper for me. After attending session organized by GEESE with the facilitation of UNDP I came to know that vote has value and it is my right to cast vote in the favour of best candidate regardless of caste for the development of village and area. I will motivate rest of female to cast their vote to best candidate and it would be step forward toward development.” (Fatima Bibi from union council Dully Wala Tehsil Darya Khan in Bhakkar)

“My family has imposed restriction on me for casting my vote and when I attended the session organized by GEESE, I motivated my family to exercise my right to vote. I am glad to say that my family has given permission of casting vote so I will cast my vote in this election to my candidate for the development of village.” (Kaneez Fatima from union council Ghadola in district Bhakkar

‘’Usually in our area, women don’t go for vote because they are unaware of the process of voting , but now they are able to vote after this campaign (Local activist at village Bartoowala – D G Khan )

“We did not know the importance of a single vote so we used to send one elder of our family to vote, now we understood that what difference one vote either from a man or woman can bring.’’ (Religious leader from village Dhanotar wala in D G Khan)

AZM Foundation

AZM Foundation is a not for profit organization primarily focusing on social, economic and political development. Micro-entrepreneurship, health, education, and agriculture are their primary areas of work. They have had the opportunity to engage with the community and local associations. 24 | P a g e

For the voter education campaign, AZM Foundation reached 19,584 people of which 15,189 were women in 295 union councils of districts Bahawalpur and Multan. The organization implemented activities in 110 union councils of district Bahawalpur and 185 union councils in district Multan.

Awareness Sessions with Communities

AZM Foundation recruited and trained 38 voter education officers to conduct sessions with local community members. These officers held 2-3 training sessions in each union council. In each union council, at least one session/workshop was conducted with community elders and religious leaders and a second workshop was held with women and youth. Thus, 216 sessions and 370 sessions were conducted in union councils of Bahawalpur and Multan respectively.

The table below shows the type of field activities conducted by AZM Foundation and a gender breakdown of people reached:-

Sr. No. Activities

Participants

MultanBahawal

pur Total

M F M F M F

1 Awareness Sessions with Community Members 2775 819

41620

6995 4395 1518

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UNDP IEC material was distributed among participants at each activity held, and participants were encouraged to paste the flyers and posters outside shops and other prominent places in their local communities. Performance Assessment – AZM Foundation

As previously mentioned, AZM Foundation was the only organization that had applied to conduct activities in South Punjab. Even though, they lacked democratic governance programming experience, UNDP selected them to avoid implementation delays and to build their programming capacity. This organization reached 19,584 people of which 15,189 were 25 | P a g e

women in 295 union councils of districts Bahawalpur and Multan. AZM Foundation reported progress to UNDP on a weekly basis and also provided interim and final project reports. They did face some challenges in implementing activities, but managed to overcome these challenges.Challenges

Below are the challenges faced by AZM Foundation:-

Due to cultural constraints, it many instances, it was difficult to obtain permission to take photographs during women only sessions.

In one union council in Multan, political party representatives were under the misconception that the activities conducted were to encourage the community members to vote in favour of candidates from the current government. AZM Foundation met with these representatives to make them understand the aim of the activities. After which, they did not create any issues for the organization and activities continued as planned.


UNDP deployed a field team to monitor the activities of AZM Foundation in both districts. The teams attended four community voter education awareness sessions in Gareebabad, Mohallah Sutliyee Wut, Village Jhok Sarkari and Torypur of district Multan district and two women voter education awareness sessions in Abassia Town and Karna Bast of district.

The UNDP monitoring team made the following recommendations to the CSO staff in Multan:-

The polling process should have been discussed in greater detail Hold sessions in public venues

Participant Quotes

‘’We will cast our votes. We understood it is our duty, but also our political representatives should perform their duty towards local issues.’’ (a literate woman from Gareebabad in Multan)

‘’The main reason of not voting is mostly due to the behaviour of our representatives who hardly come in public after an elections. They forget about their promises regarding local issues.’’ (Shamim Akhtar from Village Jhok Sarkari in Multan)

‘’Not casting vote is a negative trait among us. We promise we will vote’’ (Hafiz Mai from Torypur village in Multan )

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“We appreciate this awareness and we will vote but who will make sure about the benefit of our voting.’’ (a woman from Abbasia town in Bahawalpur)

“We believe that we can change our lives with the power of the vote.” (women in the awareness sessions)

“Voting is not the only the right of our men, it is our right as well.” (women in the awareness sessions)

Aurat Foundation

Aurat Foundation is a national, non-profit, non-governmental organization committed to spreading awareness and commitment for a just, democratic and caring society in Pakistan, where women and men are recognized as equals, with the right to lead their lives with self-respect and dignity. The objectives of the Foundation are:-

To enable women to acquire great access to knowledge, resources and institutions;

To influence attitudes and behavior for a social environment responsive to women’s concerns and people-centred issues;

To facilitate citizens’ active participation in the process of social change and governance at all level.

Aurat Foundation reached 6,420 people of which 5,388 were women in districts Larkana and Dadu. They implemented activities in 44 union councils of district Larkana and 52 union councils of district Dadu. The activities included dialogues/consultation meetings at the district level, meetings with local communities, seminars with women and youth, cluster meetings for group formatting, trainings at cluster level, corner meetings, street theatre, meetings with civil society and religious leaders and press conferences based on topics related to women’s participation in the electoral process. These activities were aimed at raising awareness about women’s right to vote, to reduce barriers to women voting and to create an informed voting population.Consultation Meeting with Stakeholders

Two consultation meetings were held at the district level; one in Dadu and one in Larkana. Approximately 200 participants attended these meetings of which approximately 81 percent were women. At these meetings, religious scholars emphasized the importance of women participation in the electoral process. Attendees were also informed on the number and colours of the ballot paper 27 | P a g e

Meetings with Local Communities at the Taluka Level

A total of eight meetings with local communities were held in four Talukas of Larkana (Larkana, Bakrani, Dokri and Ratodero) and four Talukas of Dadu (KN Shah, Meher, Johi and Dadu) with the aim to form community groups/forums for voter education activities. Approximately 600 people attended these meetings of which 90.5% were women. The meetings highlighted the importance of women voting and explained the voting process. Street theatre performances were conducted at some of these meetings. Youth Seminars

Two youth seminars were held in the two districts at educational institutions. 264 people attended these seminars of which 23.86 percent were women. At these seminars, It was highlighted that local problems could be solved with the help of local leadership. It was also stressed that women should participate in the electoral process. Participants believed that security at the polling stations was one of the barriers to women voting. If security was improved, then women turnout would increase. Also, a participant, a college principal, believed that adding civic education to the curriculum will make a difference.

Women Seminars

Two women seminars were held; one in each district. 227 participants attended of which 75 percent were women. Speakers were of the opinion that the local government system is the best form of the governance system since local representatives are easily accessible and could solve local problems. Speakers highlighted the importance of women participation in local government elections.

Cluster Meetings

A total of sixteen (16) cluster meetings were held in both districts, where clusters were formed to educate women on their right to vote. Approximately 956 people participated in these meetings of which 89% were women. At these meetings, the importance of women voting and their participation in the local government elections were key discussion points. Women were urged to cast their votes for the betterment of their community. Also, participants were given information on the process of voting.

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Training at UC Cluster Level

A total of 16 cluster trainings were planned, but only ten trainings were conducted; eight in Dadu and two in Larkana. Apart from emphasizing the importance of women voting and the local government elections, effective communication and convincing techniques were also taught. The training aimed to increase the capacity of group members to deliver similar trainings at the union council level. Mock polling exercises were conducted to show the voting process. 571 people attended these trainings of which approximately 91 percent were women. The training aimed to direct the cluster teams and focal persons on the dos and don’ts of mobilization and motivation in a gender sensitive manner.

Corner Meetings at UC Level

A total of 61 corner meetings were held: 9 in Larkana and 52 in Dadu district. A total of 1900 persons attended these meetings of which 92 percent were women. These corner meetings covered a wide range of topics from the status of women in society to the methods of empowerment. Infrastructure conditions, the importance of local government elections, the polling process and other voting information were also discussed. Women were encouraged to come out and vote on Election day. Street theatre performances were also conducted to spread core messages.

Street Theatre

29 street theatre performances were conducted, in which 1696 people. Women attendance was approximately 77 percent. In Larkana, 13 performances were conducted in Talukas of Larkana, Bakrani, Dokri and Ratodero and in Dadu, 16 performances were held in Talukas of Johi, Dadu, Meher and KN Shah. The aim of the performances was to mobilize and motivate women to vote for the candidates of their choice. These performances showed the mock exercise on the polling process.

Meetings with Civil Society and Religious Leaders

Three separate meetings were conducted with religious leaders and members of civil society; two in Dadu and one in Larkana. A total of 73 men participated in the three meetings. At these meetings, the importance of local government elections and women voting were highlighted. Barriers to women voting were discussed; where it was

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pointed out that security steps need to be taken to enable women to vote in a safe environment.

Press Conferences

Two press conferences were held in Larkana and Dadu Districts, where 40 participants attended. The main purpose of the press conferences was to highlight the purpose of the campaign to get out the vote. The press conferences were able to attract substantial media attention. It was covered on local radio stations and Dunya and KTN television stations and regional newspapers such as Awami Sindh, Awami Awaz, Wafa-e—Sindh and Daily Koshish.

The table below shows the type of field activities conducted by Aurat Foundation and a gender breakdown of people reached:-

Sr. No. Activities

Participants

Larkana Dadu Total

M F M F M F

1 Staff Orientation at Dadu (for both districts) 1 3 1 4 2 7

2 Consultation Meetings with stakeholders 10 70 18 94 28 164

3 Meeting with Local Communities at the Taluka Level 24 26

3 34 288 58 551

4 Youth Seminars 50 24 40 39 90 63

5 Cluster Meetings 54 435 48 419 102 854

6 Trainings at UC Cluster Level 8 127 42 394 50 521

7 Corner Meetings at UC level 25 304

128

1443 153 1747

8 Women Seminars 30 90 20 81 50 171

9 Street Theatre Performances 144

665

247

640 391 1305

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10 Meeting with Civil Society and Religious Scholars 20 0 53 0 73 0

11 Press Conferences 12 3 23 2 35 5

UNDP IEC material was distributed among community men and women and youth. The IEC material was pasted at prominent places such as hospitals, schools and on chingqis and rickshaws.

Performance Assessment – Aurat Foundation

Aurat Foundation was selected by UNDP based on its experience of conducting community based activities with women. They reached 6,420 people of which 5,388 were women in 96 union councils of districts Larkana and Dadu. However, due to time constraints, the organization did not complete activities in Larkana. Aurat Foundation reported progress to UNDP on a weekly basis and also provided interim and final project reports. They did face some challenges in implementing activities, which are highlighted in the section below.

Challenges

Below are the challenges faced by Aurat Foundation:-

The short duration of the project required extra human and financial resources. Therefore, multiple field teams were formed to conduct innovative activities in multiple locations.

A street theatre performance was disrupted by an activist of a political party. Aurat Foundation handled the situation through discussions.

Religious scholars seemed disinterested and disengaged, but yet some supported the campaign.

Due to two Muharram holidays, two days were unproductive. Thus, extra hours added to make up for the lost time.

The influential in some areas were displeased with Aurat Foundation staff approaching women to participate in activities.


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UNDP deployed a field team to monitor an activity of Aurat Foundation in Dadu. The monitoring team attended a voter education session at Goth Pano Khan Kolachi in union council, Mungwarri which was attended by approximately 35 women of the village. The Aurat Foundation staff explained the importance of the local government system and its functions. They explained the different tiers of local government structure in Sindh, the polling process and informed the audience of the quantity and colours of the ballot papers. Participant Quotes

“Such activities (VE Sessions) should be arranged before every election. These are very useful for first time voters. I and my two daughters, who are first time voters, attended the session and found it very informative. We are taking a voting process poster with us, which my daughters will explain to other women in our locality.” (Shabiraan, from union council Mungwarri in Dadu)

“I found this [session] very useful and learned about the voting process and the number and colour of the ballot papers.” (Najma from union council Mungwarri in Dadu)

“I am not educated, but now I have come to know, from these posters, that why should I vote…it’s for our better future.” (Loang from Dadu)

PAHEL Pakistan

PAHEL Pakistan is a non-government organization), not-for-profit, non-sectarian organization working for social development & empowerment, democracy and peace & human rights and is also a movement for the behavioural change among citizens. It’s a Human Rights-centred organization and strongly believes in capabilities of people for human development and empowerment.

PAHEL Pakistan reached 21,763 people of which 14,248 were women in districts Shikarpur and Qambar Shahdadkot. They implemented activities 55 union councils of district Shikarpur and 40 union councils of district Qambar Shahdadkot. The activities aimed at educating women voters and diminishing barriers to women voting in the local government elections by engaging local communities to promote and spread voter education. An innovative mix of activities included taluka level seminars, formation of taluka voter committees, trainings of members of committees, voter education sessions, meetings with notables and street theatre 32 | P a g e

performances on topics related to women’s participation in the electoral process. Taluka Level Seminars

11 seminars were conducted in 7 talukas of district Qambar Shahdadkot and 4 talukas of district Shikarpur on the “Role of Women Voters in democracy and Local Government Elections 2015”. The seminars focused on the importance of democracy in Pakistan, electoral processes and its transparency, power of vote, inclusion of women voters in the political process and responsibilities as citizens. These seminars were attended by 893 people from various voting groups like: members of community based organizations/village organizations, lady health workers and visitors, polio workers, teachers, para medics, bar association members, youth, media and political workers. The attendance at these seminars comprised of 46 percent of women. Formation of Taluka Voter Committees

11 Taluka Voter Committees were formed in 7 talukas of district Qambar Shahdadkot and 4 talukas of district Shikarpur for sensitizing communities on the importance of women voting and to mobilize them for their active participation in the electoral processes. Each committee comprised of 24 members belonging to the following groups:-Members of village organizations (VOs) and community based organizations (CBOs)

Meetings with representatives of Sindh Rural Support Organization (SRSO), Pirbhat and Takhleeq Foundation were conducted to identify of potential members.

Teachers (government and private schools)

Meetings with the representatives of teachers associations for example Government School Teachers Association-GSTA, Mehran Teachers Association and Primary Teachers Association were conducted identify and nominate teachers. Meetings with private school teachers were also arranged.

Lady health workers/Lady health visitors and Polio Workers

Meetings with Para Medical Associations were arranged to identify and nominate potential members.

The table below shows a breakdown of the committee members in each district:-

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Sr. No DistrictCBOs/VOs

LHV/LHWs

Polio/W

Teacher Total

Female Female Female

Female

1Shikarpur

6 6 6 6 242 6 6 6 6 243 6 6 6 6 244 6 6 6 6 245

Qambar Shahdadkot

6 6 6 6 246 6 6 6 6 247 6 6 6 6 248 6 6 6 6 249 6 6 6 6 2410 6 6 6 6 2411 6 6 6 6 24Total 66 66 66 66 264

Trainings of Taluka Voter Committees’ Members

PAHEL Pakistan conducted 11 capacity building trainings with the 264 female members of the committees. After completing the training, the members were able to conduct voter education sessions with communities.

Voter Education Sessions

There were two sets of voter educations sessions conducted as identified below:-Voter Education Sessions conducted by Taluka Voter Committees’ Members

Each member was tasked to deliver two voter education sessions on the importance of women voting in the local government elections and the voting process. Consequently, 528 voter education sessions were conducted by the members, reaching 6,548 community members of which 82 percent were women. These members also identified barriers to women voting in the area.

Voter Education Sessions conducted by Voter Education Officers

PAHEL Pakistan delivered 424 voter educations sessions to 9138 people of whom 70 percent were women on the role of local governments, importance of voting including women voting and the

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voting process. These officers also identified barriers to women voting in the area.

Street Theatre

The organization hired a local theatre group to increase awareness amongst citizens on the importance of voting especially that of women, the benefits of a local government system, to explain the voting process and spread other pertinent information on the local government elections. The theatre script was shared in Urdu and Sindhi by UNDP.

The group conducted 95 Interactive theatre performances; one in each union councils of both districts. They reached an audience of 4,750 of which 38 percent were women. Meetings with Notables/Stakeholders

52 meetings were conducted with political and contesting candidates, election commission local organizations, representatives of bar associations, press clubs, teachers’ associations, para medical associations and professors. At these meetings, the importance of women voting was emphasized and support was requested for creating a conducive and secure environment for women to come out and vote on Election Day. These meetings also resulted in the sensitization on women’s right to vote.

The table below shows the type of field activities conducted by PAHEL Pakistan and a gender breakdown of people reached:

Sr. No. Activities

ShikarpurQambar

Shahdadkot

Total

M F M F M F

1Seminars on the “Role of Women Voters in democracy and Local Government Elections 2015”

160 198 323 210 483 408

2Trainings of Voter Committees on the importance of women’s voting

0 96 0 168 0 264

3 Voter Education Sessions conducted by the trained

982 2216

199 3151

1181

5367

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members of Voter Committee members

4Voter Education Sessions conducted by Voter Education Officers with male and female

1544 3856

1231

2507

2775 6363

5 Street theatre Plays about the Importance of Women Vote 1580 101

31358 799 293

8 1812

6 Meetings with Notables/Stakeholders 70 20 68 14 138 34

UNDP IEC material was distributed among community men and women and youth. The IEC material was also pasted at prominent locations. Performance Assessment – PAHEL Pakistan

PAHEL Pakistan was selected by UNDP based on its experience of conducting grassroots area in the two districts. They reached 21,763 people of which 14,248 were women in 95 union councils of districts Shikarpur and Qambar Shahdadkot. They completed and in fact, exceeded all their planned activities in the given timeframe. They provided reports to UNDP on a weekly basis and also provided interim and final project reports. They did face some challenges during the implementation phase, which are highlighted in the section below.Challenges

Due to cultural constrains, women did not allow their photographs being taken in some areas, especially women from the Baloch community.

Refusal of signatures and thumb impressions on the attendance sheet, in fear that the activity might be in support of a particular political party.

Discouragement by feudal actors to educate women on their right to vote.

Target audience busy with crop harvesting season, especially women

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Security constrains due to Muharram. The security situation worsened after the 9th of Muharram with an attack in Jacobabad, which bordered the project area.


UNDP deployed a field team to monitor the activities of PAHEL Pakistan in Shikarpur and Qambar Shahdadkot. Two voter education sessions were monitored with the community members of village ‘Momin Saleh Burro’ in union council. There was a separate session for women and a separate session for men. A third voter education awareness campaign was monitored with mainly community women at the press club in Shahdadkot city. The topics covered local issues and local problem and why it was important to vote to solve them, importance of women voting, the process of voting and voting information. IEC material was pasted at the activity locations and distributed at the end of the session among community members. Participant Quotes

“Women need to be at the forefront in political matters of the area. Our health, education and roads in the area, are political issues and we can resolve them through our votes. This is what I have learnt in today’s seminar on the importance of women voting in upcoming local government elections”. (Shazia from Qambar Shadadkot)

“I will vote in the upcoming local government elections. After attending today’s informative seminar/session, I have decided to convince other girls in my neighbourhood to exercise their right. “ (Jannat from Qambar Shadadkot)

“This session was very useful. We didn’t know how to vote, but now we do.”(Zahida, community woman from Shikarpur)

“I will go vote with my CNIC.” (Anwar, community woman from Shikarpur)

“I will go vote in the local government elections. I have a CNIC.”(Abdi Parveen, community woman from Shikarpur)

Sindh Radiant Organization

Sindh Radiant Organization is a civil society organization working for development by engaging community members particularly in district Thatta. They reached 23,629 people of which 13,346 were women in 40 37 | P a g e

union councils of district Thatta and 30 union councils of district Jamshoro. They implemented activities at the grassroots level to increase the participation of women in the local government elections in Thatta and Jamshoro, where women turnout was low. The organization conducted 10 broad based community meetings, two one-day trainings of volunteers, 500 voter education sessions, six street theatre performances, two district level seminars, six taluka level seminars, 6 rallies and walks, two stakeholder dialogues and 4 press meetings for campaign coverage.

Sr. No Activities

Jamshoro Thatta Total

M F M F M F

1 Training of Volunteers 45 34 60 67 105 101

2 Voter Education Sessions 5792 273

5 2849 10154 8641 12889

3 Theatres on Voter Education 173 30 177 7 350 37

4 District Level Seminar on Voter Education 73 40 74 20 147 60

5 Taluka Level Seminars 263 0 251 0 514 0

6 Rallies and walks to Increase Voters’ Turnout 184 0 139 67 323 67

7 Broad based Community Meetings 200 42 3 150 203 192

UNDP IEC material was distributed among community men, women and youth.

Performance Assessment – Sindh Radiant Organization

Sindh Radiant Organization was selected by UNDP based on its experience of conducting grassroots area in the two districts. They reached 23,629 people of which 13,346 were women in 70 union districts Thatta and Jamshoro. They completed their activities as per their work plan. They provided reports to UNDP on a weekly basis and also provided interim and

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final project reports. They did face some challenges during the implementation phase, which are highlighted in the section below. Challenges

Below are the challenges faced Sindh Radiant Organization:-

Due to cultural constrains, photos and videos were not allowed to be taken in some areas.

Low attendance of women at street theatre performances because women were not allowed to attend by male members of their family.

Low turnout of women at activities organized in the late evening

Security constrains due to Muharram.

Misconception of field team supporting a political party among some community members in a few areas. After attending the activities, this misconception was removed.


UNDP deployed a field team to monitor the activities of Sindh Radiant Organization in Thatta and Jamshoro. The team monitored eight voter education sessions in eight union councils; four in Thatta and four in Jamshoro. The topics discussed at these sessions were importance of women voting, the voting process and other pertinent information related to Election Day. The team also attended a stakeholders meeting on the importance of women voting in Jamshoro. It was emphasized that voting is an equal responsibility of both men and women. Participant Quotes

“Continuous efforts are needed for women education about voting beyond elections. Such campaigns should continue after LG election so that the more women are able to get national identity cards and register as voters.” (Aneesa Sohail, from Jamshoro)

“NGO staff explained to men of my village the importance of women voting. Its female staff went door to door to meet and talk to women about casting their votes and also distributed posters. I think it has a very good impact on women as my female relatives have started

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discussing different aspects of the voting process.” (Muhammad Achar from Jamshoro)

“The VE session was very informative in many ways for me. I learnt about the number and colours of ballot papers and how to get ballot papers and cast my vote at the polling station. I love to explain the voting process poster to women of my village.” (Dharmi from Thatta)

CHANAN: STREET THEATRE

Street theatre is a form of drama that is performed outdoors, mainly on the streets, university and college campuses, in parks, markets, railway and bus stations, which is easily accessible to the general public. Theatre actors can interact with a wide range of audiences directly with the purpose of not only entertaining them, but disseminating important messages. This type of art plays an important role in bringing about change in behaviours and attitudes of the people. A troupe of street theatre performers usually attracts a crowd by singing or playing folk songs, putting up a banner and/or using props. Usually no theatrical set up is in place for this type of theatre, which makes it popular due to its easy mobility. The performers do not have to wait for the audience to come to them and neither does the audience have to wait in a queue for tickets. In street theatre, the theatre goes to the audience and not the other way around.

Another main feature of this type of drama is that it is community based and it targets audiences at the grassroots level. In addition, it is kept short to keep the audience engaged and focused. After the drama is over, the

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£144,951Input718 union

councils covered by activities in

10 districts

Output

99,150 people reached of which

56,098 were women

Outcome

theatre group questions the audience on main message/s of the performance and asks for their feedback. This two-way communication does not usually occur in other types of drama performances.

The street theatre performances for the voter education campaign to diminish barriers to women voting in the local government elections in Punjab and Sindh were conducted in six districts of Punjab and Sindh over Phase 1 and 2 of the elections. For Phase 1, district Gujrat in Punjab and districts Jacobabad and Kashmore in Sindh were selected and for Phase 2, districts Hafizabad and Jhelum in Punjab and district Badin in Sindh were selected to conduct performances. These performances were aimed at diminishing male resistance to women voting and increasing awareness among women on how to vote and why voting is important. Therefore, the script of the play contained dialogue sequences designed to achieve this messaging effect. In addition, messages were imparted to audiences which focused on generating understanding about the functions of local government, the different categories of ballot papers, the process of voting at polling stations and the date of the election in that particular district. These performances were conducted in the local languages of Punjabi, Seraiki and Sindhi.

CHANAN selected 12 theatre groups, which had previous field experience to conduct such performances. The performers were local young professionals, who had previous knowledge of the areas, locality, culture and language. To reach the maximum number of female voters, CHANAN also engaged female performer/s. In terms of the script, UNDP provide an initial guideline to be used to develop a script keeping in mind the cultural norms. After feedback from UNDP, a final script was shared with the groups for translation and practice in the local languages. In addition, CHANAN organized a three days capacity building workshop for the theatre groups.

The street theatre performances were conducted at various public locations including colleges, parks, ‘baithak/authaq, markets, open village spaces, railway stations, van and lorry terminals. The groups focused on locations, which were easily accessible by women. These performances were arranged by pre-planning and coordinating with the local community elders, local council offices, and educational institutions. Each performance began with a welcome song and/or beat to capture the attention of the local communities along with a banner branded with the campaign logo. The actors were dressed in appropriate outfits to fit their respective roles. For example, the vegetable seller actor in had a sign around his neck for the audience to easily identify his role.

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Each theatre group began the performance with a welcome speech and cultural song. They made it very clear from the start of the performance that they were not with any political party and were there to impart useful information. As mentioned, the script of the play was designed to impart information on the local government structure and its functions, the number and colours of the ballot papers, how to fold the ballot paper, the importance of voting to solve local issues and the importance of women voting. The theatre groups explained the original CNIC requirement (even if expired) to cast a vote on the polling day. They also informed the audience that they could send a text to 8300 to receive details of their voter information details. As the elections are over 3 phases, the groups announced the date of the election in the districts and the time of polling repeatedly. They emphasized that there would be separate polling booths for men and women at the polling stations. The groups pasted and distributed IEC material. Some of the theatre groups even read out the text on the IEC material. The duration of each performance was for approximately 20 minutes. This time duration was sufficient to keep the audience engaged, entertained and focused.

After each performance the coordinator would ask the crowd for their feedback and questioned them on the key messages of the play. These questions were:-

1) How was the drama?2) What were the key learnings from the play?3) Will you cast your vote in the local government elections?4) Is it important for women to cast their vote? If so, why?5) Will you take family members, including women, along to cast their

votes on Election Day?6) Will you inform others and encourage and support women to cast

their vote?District Breakdown of Performances

For Phase One of the local government elections, 352 theatre performances were conducted. This included 230 theatre performances in district Gujrat, 88 theatre performances in district Jacobabad and 34 theatre performances in district Kashmore. For Phase Two, 316 theatre performances were conducted. This included 136 theatre performances in district Badin, 88 performances in district Jhelum and 92 performances in district Hafizabad. The table below shows the breakdown of the audience in each district:-

District No. No. of No. of No. of No. of Total

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of Skits

Females (age 18-29)

Males (age 18-29)

Females (age 30 +)

Males (age 30 +)

No. of Audience

Gujrat 230 5384 3862 2492 3269 15007Jacobabad 88 1171 2072 919 1629 5791Kashmore 34 360 261 856 499 1976Hafizabad 92 2850 1086 1201 1075 6212Jhelum 88 1565 1284 984 881 4714Badin 136 2669 2618 1924 1625 8836Total 668 13999 11183 8376 8978 42536

Performance Assessment - CHANAN

CHANAN was selected by UNDP based on its experience of conducting street theatres across Pakistan for the purposes of voter education. Since it was established it has performed over 2500 performances and has targeted over 350,000 people across Pakistan while teaming up with local theatre groups.

For the voter education campaign, CHANAN completed street theatre activities in 6 districts. They were given the task to conduct two performances per union council in each of the target districts. This was an increase from the KP campaign to take into account the feedback received to increase the number of performances. CHANAN reached their target performances of 668, but fell short of performing in 21 union councils out of the 334 union councils. This was due to cultural restraints and challenges faced. Their target audience was 53% women and 47% men, both of voting age.

Challenges

The street theatre groups did face some challenges in a few union councils as below:-

Due to cultural restraints, women did not participate in watching the performances in Lilla, Toba, Ghujar and Janjeel of District Jhelum and BESA of Sary Alam gir, Hazarn Mughlaan of District Gujrat.

Video recordings and pictures were not permitted. Teams were not allowed to use a sound system in Muharram. Political party workers created hurdles as they thought the group

was supporting a political party.

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Groups faced some security issues in 21 UCs due to feudalism and other reasons. Hence, they did not perform in those UCs.

An official authority letter from the district government was required to perform in some locations. This was overcome by UNDP providing a letter stating that the project had engaged CHANAN to conduct voter education street theatre performances.


UNDP deployed two teams simultaneously in each province across the six districts to monitor the performance of street theatres and to ensure that the dialogue sequences contained messaging aligned with core campaign objectives. The field monitoring teams also probed participants on their thoughts regarding the messages being communicated as well as to confirm that the CHANAN employees were distributing the IEC material as per the agreement with UNDP. Participant Quotes

“I got information on the ballot papers and am encouraged to vote. We are four sisters and we will all go to cast our votes.” (Zarina, a community woman from Kashmore)

“We must make an effort to go out and vote. We need hospitals and doctors in our area. Our representatives should serve our area. Poor people especially women work hard to make ends meet, but have to spend thousands on medical needs. (Jamila, a community woman from Kashmore)

“I learnt the process of casting a vote. We normally do not fold it well. Now, we know how to do it properly. I’ll go out to cast my vote as I believe the local government system is good for us.” (Fatima, a community woman from Kashmore)

“It is good that the theatre play was performed in my village and all women and men of the family/clan watched it together. But most important element of the play was the message regarding women voting. Women must vote in the local government elections as it is linked with the social development of our area. And social development is beneficial for our children’s future”. (Abida from Jacobabad)

“Awareness through performances is an important step towards female participation in electoral process. The most interesting part

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was the method of casting a vote. It not only helped me, but also the other first time voters.” (Asifa from Jhelum)

“The information shared through street theatre is very effective and important as this has helped us to understand how women are equally important in the voting process.” (Atiqa Naz from Hafizabad)

“It is a good way to spread information. We should take care of our streets and choose the representatives for the better development of our villages.” (Ms. Asia from Gujrat)

“I belong to a minority community. I learned the procedure to cast a vote, the number of ballot papers and its colours. This is the first time in my life that I will cast my vote. When I will go at polling station, I will apply the procedure, which I saw in the play. I will cast her vote and also will spread awareness to others women of her area.” (Beena from Badin)

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£69,272Input668

performances in 283 uinion

councils of 6 districts

Output

42,536 people reached of which

22,375 were women

Outcome

BROADCAST AND PRINT MEDIARADIO

Radio was the dominant part of the multi-media mix designed for the campaign. This was due to UNDP’s assessment of media consumption habits in the provinces. During the initial planning sessions, and in consultation with media experts, it was agreed that local radio stations represented one of the most effect means for communication campaign messages to target audiences. Women, in particular those in rural areas, use the radio as their main source of news.

Radio also has other added advantages. This includes the radio transistor not requiring electricity to work. This is a huge advantage in areas where there are many hours of power outages, or where there is a lack of electricity. Thus, radio provides a form of entertainment opportunity and a source of information to the people especially in rural areas.

Consequently, our media deployment strategy contained a high number of radio spots during the Engagement Period – the key ‘information’ phase of the campaign. For this Period, 3 radio messages were produced in each local language, with each one communicating specific messages to men and women. These products were mostly 30-second adverts, while the radio products for the Awareness Period, Final Call and Action were snappy 15-second adverts as per the communications strategy.

For the campaign period, 13,115 radio spots were aired on 24 stations. These Election Commission of Pakistan approved radio messages were tailored separately for Sindh and Punjab and developed in Urdu and Seraiki for Punjab and in Urdu and Sindhi for Sindh. Each message was accompanied by cultural music from each of the province. To refresh one’s memory, the script of the radio messages for each period in Sindh and Punjab are below.

Awareness Messages

1. Local Government Elections have been announced in Punjab. Your vote can be your voice that can be a guarantee to develop and solve issues in your community. Carry out your responsibility by voting in these elections for the betterment and development of your community.

2. Local Government Elections have been announced in Sindh. Your vote can be your voice that can be a guarantee to develop and solve issues in your community. Carry out your responsibility by

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voting in these elections for the betterment and development of your community.

Engagement Messages

1. Local Government Elections have been announced in Punjab. The development of your community is only possible by both men and women voting. To resolve local issues, everyone’s vote is important. Make your vote your voice.

2. Local Government Elections have been announced in Sindh. The development of your community is only possible by both men and women voting. To resolve local issues, everyone’s vote is important. Make your vote your voice.

3. Besides being a woman, I am also a mother and for a better future for my children, I will definitely cast my vote. Like me, you should also participate in the local Government Elections in Punjab. Let us all get together and make our vote our voice.

4. Besides being a woman, I am also a mother and for a better future for my children, I will definitely cast my vote. Like me, you should also participate in the local Government Elections in Sindh. Let us all get together and make our vote our voice.

5. Look for local solutions for local problems. Women, men, youth, minorities, elders, the disabled, all have a national responsibility to vote. Therefore, come and let’s vote with a sense of responsibility. A woman’s vote is as important as a man’s vote. Come and vote for a better future.

6. (Punjab)Husband: HelloWife: Hello. You are back from the local election commission office. What information did you receive about the local government elections? Husband: Yes, I am back and I have received useful information.

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Wife: Really!!! What’s that?Husband: Every voter will receive one or two ballot Wife: Really!!! But how would we know if we get one ballot paper or two?Husband: Yes, Yes, I have found that out too. Those voters that will vote for the municipal committee, they will receive one white ballot paper for the general member of the ward, while union council voters will receive two ballot papers; one white and the second blue. The white ballot paper is for the general member and the blue is for election of the chairman and vice chairman.Wife: Oh wow! This information is valuable. We must share this with others.Husband: Yes and we should encourage both men and women from our community to go cast their vote.

7. (Sindh)Husband: HelloWife: Hello. You are back from the local election commission office. What information did you receive about the local government elections? Husband: Yes, I am back and I have received useful information. Wife: Really!!! What’s that?Husband: Every voter will receive one, two or three ballot papersWife: Really!!! But how would we know if we are to receive one ballot paper or two or three?Husband: Don’t worry about that. I have also found that information out too. Those voters that will vote for the municipal committee and town committee, they will receive one blue ballot paper for the general member of the ward, while union committee voters will receive two ballot papers; one white and the second green. The white ballot paper is for the general member and the green is for election of the chairman and vice chairman. Likewise, union council voters will receive three ballot papers; white for the general members, green for the chairman and vice chairman and blue for the election of the district council.Wife: Hmmm. That’s good. This information is very valuable. We must share this with others.Husband: Yes and we should encourage both men and women from our community to go cast their vote.

8. The Local Government Elections in Punjab are taking place. For information on your vote and polling station, SMS your CNIC number to 8300.

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9. The Local Government Elections in Sindh are taking place. For information on your vote and polling station, SMS your CNIC number to 8300.

Final Call Messages

1. The Local Government Elections in Punjab are taking place tomorrow. Make your vote your voice. Cast your vote for the betterment and development of your community.

2. The Local Government Elections in Sindh are taking place tomorrow. Make your vote your voice. Cast your vote for the betterment and development of your community.

Action Messages

1. The Local Government Elections in Punjab are taking place today. I am going to go cast my vote. You should also cast your vote for the betterment and development of your community.

2. The Local Government Elections in Sindh are taking place today. I am going to go cast my vote. You should also cast your vote for the betterment and development of your community.

3. The Local Government Elections in Punjab are taking place today. I have casted my vote. You should also cast your vote for the betterment and development of your community.

4. The Local Government Elections in Sindh are taking place today. I have casted my vote. You should also cast your vote for the betterment and development of your community.

In addition, UNDP promoted Punjab Women’s Helpline radio message, which provided awareness to women on elections and a phone number to call to file complaints if election violence occurred. Thus, UNDP aired 603 radio spots of this message on 9 radio stations in Phase 3 of the campaign in Punjab. Number of Radio Spots

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The number radio spots aired on Punjab and Sindh radio stations are given below:-

Sr. No. Province FM Network Stations/City No. of

Spots1

Punjab

Radio AwazBahawalpur 1224

2 Pakpattan 6843 Bhalwal/Sargodha 5354 Rajanpur 5355 Radio Pakistan –

FM 93Faisalabad 362

6 Mianwali/Multan 8407 FM 91 Lahore 6868 Islamabad/Rawalpindi 5359

FM 100Lahore 714

10 Islamabad/Rawalpindi 53511 Rahimyar Khan 53112 Multan 52613 FM 101 Sialkot 122214

Sindh

FM 105

Shikarpur 37115 Larkana 37116 Jacobabad 37017 Badin 32518 Dadu 32519

FM 93Larkana 369

20 Khairpur 36821 Hyderabad 29022 FM 100 Hyderabad 33123 Karachi 53124 FM 91 Karachi 535Total Spots 13,115

Number of Radio Spots - Punjab Commission on the Status of Women

Sr. No. FM Network Stations/City No. of

Spots1

Radio AwazBahawalpur 67

2 Bhalwal/Sargodha 673 Rajanpur 674 Radio Pakistan –

FM 93 Multan 675 FM 91 Islamabad/Rawalpindi 676

FM 100Islamabad/Rawalpindi 67

7 Rahimyar Khan 678 Multan 67

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9 FM 101 Sialkot 67Total 603

Performance Assessment - Radio

Black Box Sounds was selected to develop the radio messages, while Interflow Communications was selected air the messages. Neither faced any challenges in developing or airing the radio messages.

TELEVISION

Television, as a communication medium is convenient and also flexible. Adverts can reach millions of viewers with ease, while giving the producers the flexibility to use various audio and visual effects. These make adverts unforgettable and emotional and drive home the key messages.

For the campaign, two adverts of approximately 2.5 minutes were produced and approved by the Election Commission of Pakistan. The first advert was produced in Urdu for Punjab and Urdu and Sindhi for Sindh and the second advert was produced in Urdu. The second advert was only produced for Phase 2 and 3 of the local government elections. Both adverts motivated and encouraged women to cast their vote. They showed the voting process at the polling booth for the voter to follow the process. However, the second advert, produced with UNDP’s Good Will ambassador, Hadiqa Kiani, had an urban appeal and might have been effective to get out the vote as a local celebrity is delivering the message. These adverts were used in the Final Call and Action Periods to ‘Get-Out-The-Vote’. The first advert was shown on regional channels and the second one was shown on the widely watched national channels.

The adverts were broadcasted 105 times on 12 Television channels. Reliable data on viewership is not available. The combined reach

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£29,511Input 13,718 Spots

Output

6.33 Million People

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estimated by the TV companies is 28 million people. However, they are unable to verify such claims.

Name of Channels and Number of Spots

Sr. No. Channels Total

Spots1 PTV 102 Hum TV 113 Geo Entertainment 84 ARY Digital 75 Express Entertainment 86 ATV 157 KTN 68 Sindh TV 99 Mehran TV 910 Apna TV 511 Punjab TV 912 Waseeb 8

Total 105

Performance Assessment – Television

Black Box Sounds was selected to produce the television adverts, while Interflow Communications was selected to broadcast the adverts. Interflow Communications did face a challenge, which they managed to overcome to the best of their ability.Challenge

A challenge faced was:-

Droppage of television spots. However, the partner rescheduled some of the spots for a different time and/or in the next election phase. Overall, 6% of the spots were dropped, which is below the media industry average 10-15%.

52 | P a g e£56,847Input 105 TV Spots

Output

28 Million People

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NEWSPAPERS

The coloured adverts provided by the Election Commission of Pakistan were placed on the front pages of 20 regional newspapers without the ECP logo for the three phases of the local government elections. Each newspaper carried 3 inserts, thus a total of 60 inserts were printed. There was a two day delay by the ECP in providing the adverts for Phase 3. Therefore, UNDP designed its own advert, which was printed on one day. In addition, a day or two gap was given to cover the number of inserts in case of a last minute drop.

Screenshot of Daily Apeal from 2nd of December, 2016

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Screenshot of Nawa-i- Bhakkar from 29th October, 2016

Name of Newspaper, Readership and Number of Inserts

Reliable data on viewership is not available. The combined reach estimated by the Newspaper companies is over 6 million people. However, they are unable to verify such claims.

Sr. No

Name of Newspaper Stations/City Circulati

onReadership Inserts

Punjab

1 Nawa-i-Waqt Lahore-Multan 335,652 2,013,912 3

2 Khabrain Lahore-Multan 237,739 1,426,434 3

3 Nawa-i-Bhakkar Bhakkar 25,000 150,000 34 Jazba Gujrat 22,000 132,000 35 Karnama Lodhran 22,000 132,000 36 Pegham Faisalabad 25,000 150,000 37 Naya Daur Multan 20,000 120,000 3

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8 Sayadat Bahawalpur 20,000 120,000 39 Janch Jhang 15,000 90,000 310 Abaseen Rahim Yar

Khan 22,000 132,000 311 Wifaq News Sargodha 22,000 132,000 3Sindh12 Khabroon Sukkur 22,000 132,000 313 Ibrat Hyderabad 40,000 240,000 314 Kawish Hyderabad 80,000 480,000 315 Qaumi Karachi 30,000 180,000 316 Ummat Karachi 70,000 420,000 317 Awami Awaz Karachi 30,000 180,000 318 Imroz Karachi 22,000 132,000 319 Apeal Karachi 25,000 150,000 320 Jurrat Karachi 25,000 150,000 3Total 21

Performance Assessment – Newspapers

The Brandpartnership was selected to insert the newspaper adverts. They did face a challenge, but managed to resolve it quickly and effectively.Challenge

A challenge faced was:-

Some newspaper inserts were dropped. However, the partner had given a day or two gap between inserts to overcome this issue. The Brandpartnership had successfully printed 60 inserts.

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£27,452Input60

Newspaper Inserts

Output

6,662,346 People

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OUTDOOR MEDIABillboards

Billboards are an effective method of disseminating short messages using eye catching designs. For the voter education campaign, the project, with the design approval from the Election Commission of Pakistan, displayed 85 billboards across the six major cities of Punjab and Sindh, which covered 11 districts. These billboards were displayed for a one month period over the three phases of the elections. The locations of these billboards were chosen based on prominence to catch the eye of travellers and pedestrians. There were certain spaces where larger size billboards of 60 by 20 were not available, so smaller ones were placed of 45 by 15 or 20 by 10, which were compensated by increasing the quantity to 2 or more.Billboard Design

The messages in Urdu on the billboard encouraged women to cast their votes to develop their community and to make their vote act as their voice and their future. The messaging also stated the requirement of a CNIC to cast a vote and also promotes texting to 8300 for further details on the vote and location. The images on the billboards are similar to that of the transit media. The design on the billboard includes the campaign logo of a female (hand) casting her vote with a tick mark next to it and the text, which reads as local government elections- My Vote My Voice and provincial monuments with the national flag of Pakistan in the background. As in the design of the transit media, there is an image of a woman’s CNIC next to the message on the requirement of the CNIC to cast a vote. The imagery used was deliberately shaded in colour in order to make the advertisement eye catching.

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Billboard Design (English Version)

Billboard Design (Urdu Original)

Location of Billboards

Sr. No. Province District Quantity1

PunjabFaisalabad 13

2 Lahore 193 Rawalpindi 9

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4 Multan 145 Sindh Karachi (6 districts) 216 Hyderabad 9Total 85

Performance Assessment - Billboards

Interflow Communications was selected to produce and display the billboards for the voter education campaign in Punjab and Sindh. They have over 30 years of experience in marketing communications service. Interflow Communications placed 85 billboards across 11 districts over the three phases of the elections. They did face some challenges, but were able to find quick and effective solutions to them.Challenges

Some of the challenges faced were:-

Unavailability of requested billboard size in some locations. This problem was compensated by displaying several smaller sized billboards in its place.

Three of the voter education billboards were replaced by political party billboards. The partner followed up to reaffix the ECP approved billboards. Of the three billboards, two billboards were reaffixed two days after and one billboard was displayed at an alternate site as a mitigation measure to avoid a security risk. In addition, the partner displayed three additional billboards in another district (Multan).


UNDP deployed three teams simultaneously in each province across the 11 districts to monitor the display of billboards. Below are some of their findings:-

21 billboard and bridge panel sites were visited to inspect the 15 reported billboards and 6 bridge panels. The locations of the billboards and bridge panels were spread out across districts Karachi and Malir namely in Clifton, Allah Wala Town, Askari 4, Saddar Town, Gulshan Town, Surjani/New Karachi/Nusrat Bhutto Colony, Jamshed Town/Shikarpur Colony, Nazimabad, North Nazimabad, Site area, Orangi Town, Agra Taj Colony, Malir/Shah Town/Shah Faisal Town, Kemari Town and Gulberg. The inspected billboards and bridge panels were properly affixed at prominent locations reported by the partner. The selected locations are visible to many travellers and passerbys. There was one billboard in Kemari Town (Karachi) that was not affixed and the space was empty. The

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partner affixed the billboard within 24 hours. The monitoring team revisited Kemari Town and photographed the billboard.

The billboards in Multan were installed at prominent location and were found in excellent condition.

In Lahore, the billboards were installed at major locations.

In Hyderabad, the monitoring team found the voter education skin replaced by a political party skin. The partner reinstalled the voter education skin after a discussion with the political party members.

Participant Quotes

“I sent a text to 8300 after seeing the bridge panel on elections. It was very helpful.” (Muhammad Afzal, a newspaper seller)

“The billboard shows the requirement to take one’s CNIC to cast one’s vote. I will vote.” (Mukhtar Bano at Site Area)

“It is a very useful initiative. I have seen a lot of people using 8300 number written on the billboard to get details of their polling stations. I will vote in the upcoming election along with my family.” (Baber Ahmad , a street vendor)

“The billboard reminds us that we need to have our original ID card to cast our votes.” (Shahabuddin, a shop keeper)

TRANSIT MEDIA

Transit Media is a form of outdoor advertising that displays messages in or on the outside of vehicles such as the side of a van. The result is essentially a mobile billboard. This innovative engagement tool reaches a large audience of the general public as it not only targets van commuters, but also other drivers, passengers, pedestrians and business/shop owners. The wrapped vans have large, colourful and catchy designs that capture the attention of the public. As vans are moving, the location of this means of engagement varies and is flexible. Also, the recall rate of this type of engagement tool is higher than the traditional billboards. However, the two used in combination will anchor the core messages.

UNDP strategically decided to wrap 300 vans on all four sides to reach a larger target audience. Vans, with routes from one district to another or multiple districts were mostly used to cover a broad spectrum of

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audiences across Punjab and Sindh for the three phases of elections. The core messages were the same as the billboards in Urdu and Sindhi to have a resonating effect among target audiences. The imagery used was deliberately shaded in colour in order to make the advertisement visually appealing and to attract attention.

A Transit Media Vehicle in the Field

Vehicle Routes

Punjab

Sr. No. City Route

No. of Vehicles

1 Gujrat

Lahore 4Langy Khoja 2

Kunja 4

Alipur Chatta 1

Mandibahaudin Phalia 2

Gujranwala 2

Sialkot 2

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Sargodha 1

Head Faqeeran Gojra 1

2 LahoreRoute 148, Route 102, Route 105, Route 106, Route 107, Route 108, Route 143 and Route 145

25

3 Faisalabad Route B9, Route B4 and Route B8 10

4 Bhakkar

Khansar 2Mianwali 1Karor 1Dera 2Layyah 4Gohar Khan 1Mankera 1Jhang 1Dajol & Kotla 1

5 Hafizabad

Gujranwala 6Gujrat 1

Sialkot 1

Sheikupura 3

Faisalabad 1

Alipur 3

6 Jhelum

Pind Dadankhan 1Pindigheb 1Mandi 1Lahore 4Kotli 1Gujrat 1Nara 1Nakakhalaspur 1Sangoi 1Faizabad 1Khurd 1Chakomal 1

7 Sialkot Zafar Wall 3

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Kingra 3Narowal 2Shakar Garh 1

8 Multan

Alipur Chatta 1Nishtar 5Mailse 2Local Route 4Jalalpur 1Layyah 3Route No. 3 1Awasti Maloon 1Dera Ghazi Khan 6Jhang/Sharkot 5Muzzafargarh 8

9 Bahawalpur

Yazman 2Hasilpur 3Khachi Wala 1Tele Wala 1Multan 3Bahawalnagar 1Ahmad Pur 1Khot Abbas 1

10 Rahim Yar Khan

Sadiqabad 7Abuzabi Palace 2Khanpur 2

11 Rawalpindi

1C 21 47 23 1Murree 1

Sindh

1 Shahdadkot

Rato Dero 2Sajawal 1Meru Khan 1Sukkur 2UBO Ser Thal 1

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Larkana 14

2 Qambar

Larkana 3Naseerabad 3Sukkur 3Warah 2

3 Larkana

Qambar 1Khairpur 4Radhan 1Naseerabad 2Ranipur 2PanoAqil 2Badah 1Riazabad 1Radah 1

4 Kandkot Sukkur, Kashmore, Shikarpur and Thull 22

5 Hyderabad

Thatta 4Sajawal – Thatta 4Bathoro – Thatta 3Thudo – Badin 3Hyderabad – Badin 6Hyderabad – Sajawal 1Golarchi – Badin 3Sehwan 1Alashehzadpur 2

6 KarachiLocal Route - Gulshan Ghazi Adda 11Local Route - Qayumabad Adda 9Local Route - Baldia Adda 6

Total 300

Performance Assessment – Transit Media

Black Box Sounds was selected to produce and wrap skins on 300 vehicles for the voter education campaign in Punjab and Sindh over the three phases of the local government elections. They are a development-communications company specializing in productions and public awareness campaigns aimed at social and developmental issues, behavioural change communication and mass awareness. During the campaign period, they did face some challenges, which they effectively overcame. Challenges

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Some of the challenges faced were:-

In Karachi, there were limited Hiaces and the ones that were available were in terrible condition with broken doors. Therefore, the partner used bigger coaches for the purpose of the campaign to overcome this problem.

Law enforcements agencies in high risk areas like Baldia Town would ask teams to provide a no objection certificate (NOC). The teams carried this on them to avoid any problems.

There were instances of removal of skins by van owners after a few days. The partner had monitoring teams in the field, which repasted skins where necessary.


Besides, the partner monitoring teams, UNDP deployed three teams simultaneously in each province to monitor the display of billboards. Below are some of their findings:-

Two vehicles covered in voter education (VE) skins were seen at van stops at Thatta and Hyderabad. These vehicles were covered with the pana-flex skins on all four sides. The messages on the vehicles were in Sindhi. Five vans were observed which had removed VE skins from one or more sides while five drivers have completely removed VE skins from their vehicles. These vehicles were photographed in Thatta, Badin, Sajawal and Hyderabad and the issue was brought into the notice of the vendor. The skins were re-installed the next day and the vendor shared photographs of the newly pasted VE skins on these vehicles.

Two vehicles covered in voter education skins were inspected at the bus terminals in Jhelum and Hafizabad. Four vehicles were spotted on route in Hafizabad. 17 vehicles were verified; 12 in Jhelum by 15 in Hafizabad by transport staff. The inspected vehicles were covered with the pana-flex skins on all four sides. The messages on the vehicles were in Urdu.

The vehicles 2 vehicles covered in voter education skins were inspected at the bus terminals in Karachi. Four vehicles were spotted on route; two in Saddar Town, one in Agra Taj Colony and one in Baldia Town. 26 vehicles were verified; 13 at the bus terminal of the Z2 route in Baldia Town; 12 at the bus terminal of the G7 and G 25 routes in Gulshan Ghazi and 1 at the bus terminal at the Qayyoom abad and Shareef abad. The inspected vehicles were

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covered with the voter education pana-flex skins. The messages on the vehicles were in Urdu

Transit media was also found on the roads and bus stands of Lahore, Faisalabad and Bhakkar

9 vehicles covered in voter education skins were seen on route, 6 in Bahawalpur and 3 in Multan. These vehicles were covered with the pana-flex skins on all four sides. The messages on the vehicles were in Urdu.

Two vehicles covered in voter education skins were inspected at the bus terminal in Kashmore. Six vehicles were spotted on route; two from Kashmore to Sukkur, two from Shikarpur to Sukkur and two in Larkana. 25 vehicles were verified; 15 in Kashmore by petrol pump staff and 10 in Larkana by transport staff. These vehicles were covered with the pana-flex skins on all four sides. The messages on the vehicles were in Sindhi.

5 vehicles covered in voter education skins were seen on route in Kambar Shahdadkot. These vehicles were covered with the pana-flex skins on all four sides. The messages on the vehicles were in Sindhi

Participant Quotes

“It is our national responsibility to vote. These wrapped vehicles are an effective way to pass on the message.” (Shaukat Zaheer from Jhelum)

“Educated women also come here to travel. When they see the wrapped vehicles, they feel happy that they are also being encouraged to vote. This is the first time we have seen something like this. My family and I, including the women in our family, will definitely cast our votes.” (Riaz Butt, manager in charge at bus terminal in Jhelum)

“Women should cast their votes. This is the message that is emphasized on the bus. They should vote as local government elections will help solve local problems with local solutions. The local problems are lack of clean water, streets and no proper disposal of garbage.” (Muhammad Zahid, transport in charge, at G7 bus terminal)

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“Voting is a right also for women. Women should vote to improve their communities with respect to clean water, streets and garbage.” (Abdul Saboor, transport in charge, at G7 bus terminal)

“I am excited to vote in this election. I plan to go door-to-door to convince men and women to cast their votes. I have seen the skins on many buses and the women awareness message in these banners is very obvious. It is a great step for women empowerment.” (Majid Bhatti, transport staff)

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£102,314Input 300 Transit Vehicles

Output

580,920 people

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DIGITAL MEDIASMS/TEXT MESSAGE

Text message or short message service (SMS) is an effective campaign tool to help communicate a message, which will raise awareness and give key information to people. The advantages of using SMS is that it is fast and immediate, it is delivered to your personal communication device and the same message can be sent to many mobile users at once. However, during a campaign, it is important to deliver the right message at the right time to the right audience. This can encourage positive behavioural changes in people. It is an effective tool to reach people that will be difficult to do so other campaign tools.

The UNDP team developed a short message in the national languages for dissemination to the target audience. The text message was sent out a day before the election (Final Call Period) and on the day of the election (Action Period) in Urdu and Sindhi, which said ‘Vote in the local government election … Your vote is your voice’. The handle used was WomenVote. The table below gives the district wise breakdown of the text messages sent.

District-wise Breakdown of SMS

District No. of Attempted SMS Messages

PunjabLodhran 40,598Vehari 34,985Okara 66,402Pakpattan 32,045Bahawalnagar 37,256Faisalabad 79,879Bhakkar 39,954Lahore 88,956Kasur 35,645Nankana Sahib 32,710Gujrat 47,881Chakwal 41,225

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Sargodha 34,116Gujranwala 36,943Sahiwal 15,083Attock 10,433Jhelum 10,017Mianwali 8,647Chiniot 7,898Toba Tek Singh 13,270Hafizabad 9,992Mandi Bahuddin 9,497Sheikupura 27,177Khanewal 16,927Rahim Yar Khan 38,375Bahawalpur 38,375Multan 95,000DG Khan 34,000Muzaffargarh 33,500Layyah 33,362Jhang 32,111Sialkot 32,000Rawalpindi 16,500SindhKhairpur 51,212Sukkar 75,125Ghotki 41,525Larkana 71,544Shikarpur 53,326Shahdadkot 41,231Jacobabad 42,365Kashmore 41,123Badin 10,975Dadu 16,294Hyderabad 37,568

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Jamshoro 11,352Matiari 5,937Mirpurkhas 15,146Naushero Feroze 15,647Sajawal 9,653Sanghar 14,026Benazirabad 11,346Tando Allahyar 5,309Tando Muhammad Khan 5,280Thatta 10,494Tharparkar 11,039Umerkot 19,993Karachi (6 districts) 353,223Total 2,101,492Successful SMS Messages Sent 2,099,038

Performance Assessment – SMS/Text Message

Black Box Sounds was selected to run the SMS campaign to raise awareness on the local government elections in Punjab and Sindh. The Black Box Sounds team tested the software before the launch of the campaign to make sure that there were no problems with it.

Voice Messages

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£5,207Input 2,099,038 SMS

Output

2,099,038 people

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Voice messages, like text messages, will communicate key messages to your communication device in a fast and immediate manner. This form of communication has the added advantage of easily targeting an illiterate audience.

The UNDP team developed two short voice messages in the national languages for dissemination to the target audience. The voice messages went out a day before the election (Final Call Period) and on the day of the election (Action Period) in Urdu, Seraiki and Sindhi. A total of 1,697,192 voice messages (robo calls) were released the day before the election and on Election Day to get out the vote in Urdu, Seraiki and Sindhi. The scripts of the messages are below

1. Greetings!!! Tomorrow are local government elections in your district. Make your vote act as your voice and vote for the development of your community.

2. Greetings!!! Today are local government elections in your district. Make your vote act as your voice and vote for the development of your community.

The table below shows the district wise breakdown of the voice messages.

District-wise Breakdown of Voice Messages

District No. of Attempted Voice Messages

PunjabLodhran 33,102Vehari 26,529Okara 33,419Pakpattan 27,879Bahawalnagar 23,902Faisalabad 58,901Bhakkar 24,702Lahore 70,652Kasur 27,811Nankana Sahib 24,952Gujrat 31,965

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Chakwal 36,011Sargodha 27,807Gujranwala 28,794Sahiwal 12,689Attock 8,777Jhelum 10,017Mianwali 7,274Chiniot 6,644Toba Tek Singh 11,163Hafizabad 9,992Mandi Bahuddin 7,990Sheikupura 22,863Khanewal 14,240Rahim Yar Khan 39,951Bahawalpur 39,951Multan 39,951DG Khan 39,951Muzaffargarh 39,951Layyah 39,951Jhang 39,951Sialkot 39,961Rawalpindi 18,802SindhKhairpur 39,165Sukkar 69,632Ghotki 35,465Larkana 61,452Shikarpur 47,337Shahdadkot 39,784Jacobabad 37,312Kashmore 39,967Badin 10,975Dadu 11,128

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Hyderabad 30,763Jamshoro 9,550Matiari 4,994Mirpurkhas 12,741Naushero Feroze 13,163Sajawal 8,121Sanghar 11,799Benazirabad 10,386Tando Allahyar 4,466Tando Muhammad Khan 4,442Thatta 10,147Tharparkar 10,548Umerkot 16,769Karachi (6 districts) 338,420Total 1,805,021Successful Voice Messages 1,697,192

Performance Assessment – Voice Messages

Black Box Sounds was selected to run the voice message component of the voter education campaign in Punjab and Sindh. They tested the software before the launch of the campaign to make sure that there were no problems with it.

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£10,524Input1,697,192

Voice Messages

Output

1,697,192 people

reached

Outcome

Information, Education & Communication (IEC) Material Distribution

The IEC material was disseminated using various distribution networks. The aim was to reach out to as many people as possible within the target audience especially women in the low voter turnout districts. The project engaged five CSOs (Global Education Economic and Social Empowerment (GEESE), Aurat Foundation, PAHEL Pakistan, Sindh Radiant Organization and AZM Foundation) who were conducting voter education activities and also distribute the IEC material in various districts of Punjab and Sindh. CHANAN the street theatre group, Free and Fair Elections Network (FAFEN), National Youth Assembly (NYA), World Food Programme (WFP) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) also contributed to distributing the material over different phases in both the provinces at the grassroots level.

The IEC material consisted of posters, flyers, stickers (Urdu and Sindhi for Sindh and Urdu for Punjab), paper cups and wrist bands. CSOs

GEESE was engaged to carry out voter education in two districts of Punjab (D.G.Khan and Bhakkar). The CSO distributed about 138,000 leaflets, stickers, flyers and 25,000 wrist bands.

AZM Foundation conducted voter education activities in Punjab (districts Bahawalpur and Multan), where they distributed 340,000 sets of the IEC material in both the districts.

Aurat Foundation was engaged in the Sindh province (Larkana and Dadu). The CSO distributed 60,065 sets of IEC material which were displayed at prominent locations and distributed among participants.

Sindh Radiant Organization (SRO) was engaged in Sindh, districts Jamshoro and Thatta. 100,000 sets in both districts were displayed and distributed among the participants, the process posters were also displayed at prominent public places and other locations in the program area.

PEHAL Pakistan conducted voter education campaign in Sindh districts Shikarpur and Kamber Shahdadkot. 88,000 sets of IEC material was distributed among the participants in both the districts. CHANAN

CHANAN conducted street theatres in Sindh and Punjab. They distributed 197,000 sets of IEC material in Kashmore, Jacobabad, Hafizabad, Jehlum and Badin. While performing the street theatres which were targeted

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towards women, they distributed the material among all the participants (in schools and universities etc.)

FAFEN

FAFEN distributed 49,200 sets of the IEC material using their own networks in various districts of Sindh and Punjab. National Youth Assembly

The National Youth Assembly was extremely keen to conduct voter education campaign for UNDP. They distributed 1,214,825 sets of the IEC material (flyers, posters, stickers, wrist bands and paper cups) in various districts of Sindh and Punjab. UNICEF and WFP

Our partners UNICEF and WFP distributed 367,500 sets of the material mainly in Karachi, Sindh. Election Commission of Pakistan

57,400 sets of process posters were sent to the Election Commission of Pakistan, to be place at all the polling stations in both the provinces. These posters helped the voters to understand the process of voting while they are inside the polling station to vote.

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VALUE FOR MONEY

The chart below provides a detailed breakdown of where UNDP believes it has provided value for money for each programme component.

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Voter Education to Diminish Barriers to Women Voting in Local Government Elections in Punjab and Sindh

Inputs Output Outcome

Information, Education and

Communication Material (IEC) of

GBP 145,265

3,300,000 Flyers, Posters, Stickers and Wrist Bands

distributed Estimated 3,300,000

people reached

Radio Messages of

GBP 29,511

36 Radio messages produced and 13,718 spots

broadcasted

6.33 Million

Listeners of radio

TV Adverts (Inserts) of

GBP 56,847

2 TV Adverts produced and 105 times aired on TV

channels

Verifiable viewership

data is unavailable

Print Media of

GBP 27,45260 Newspapers Adverts

placed in 20 regional newspapers of Punjab and

Estimated 6,662,346 readership

Digital Media of

GBP 15,730

2,099,038 SMS and 1,697,192 Voice Messages

released

1.9 Million Unique no.

reached

Transit Media of

GBP 102,314300 Vehicles wrapped in VE

Skins

Estimated 580,920 people reached

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Outdoor (Billboards) of GBP 169,932

85 Billboard displayed in 11districts

No. figure available

Micro Capital Grant Agreement with CSOs

of GBP 144,951

CSOs engaged for Voter Education in 10 districts 99,150 people

participated in CSO activities

Inputs Output Outcome

Street Theatre of GBP 69,272 668 Street theatre

performances in 6 districts42,536 people participated

Operational Cost of GBP 70,819

6 Staff, 3 ICs,6 Monitoring Visits,

Effectively managed and monitored the

project

LESSONS LEARNEDThis section details lessons learned from the campaign to guide future programming efforts, and maps out the administrative and legal reforms that need to be implemented in order to remove barriers which prevent women from fully participating in the democratic process in Pakistan.

Appetite and Demand

It has been observed during the execution of this project that there is a strong need and appetite for activities at the community level to communicate voter education messages that are tailored to the local cultural context.

It has been suggested by numerous participants that more community engagement and interactive activities should be arranged to promote voter education, such as female social mobilization and implementing local youth volunteers program to increase the awareness about electoral processes and the importance of voting.

Men Are a Key Target Audience

The male participants mostly said men should be engaged more in such campaigns to help change their attitudes about women voting.

Overcoming Cultural Barriers to Women Voting

Numerous women who were engaged during the campaign called for a more focused effort on working with community elders and tribal leaders to overcome cultural resistance to women voting. This was particularly prevalent in Shangla and Battagram.

It is not just about cultural barriers

Many men who were interviewed said that if security conditions were improved they would change their minds about women voting.

.

Administrative and Legal Reforms

The data emerging from the campaign on the barriers to women voting underline the reality that in certain areas, even if women are motivated to vote as a consequence of voter education efforts, they are often prevented from doing so on Election Day. Administrative and legislative steps are needed to remove these barriers and sanction those who violate the law in future elections:

To The ECP:

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Establish separate polling stations for men and women. Sanction those (violation of ROPA) who merge male and female polling stations after the polling schedule has been issued by Returning Officers.

Ensure only female polling officials are present at female polling station

Ensure that polling stations are accessible to women in remote areas (1-2 kilometres from their houses?)

Initiate legal proceeding against those who bar women from voting or conspire to stop them from voting

To the Provincial Governments:

Ensure female police officers are on duty at female polling stations Improve security at sensitive polling stations in order to deny

opportunities for men to claim that it is ‘not safe’ for women to vote.

To Political Parties

Reach a cross-party consensus on passing a legislative amendment that a) declares null and void the results in constituencies where there is less than a specific turnout b) rejects the results from polling stations in areas where women have been banned/prevented from voting.

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report to dfid on voter education voter... · web viewa total of eight meetings with local...

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