Behaviour Change Communication and Facilitation Skills for Community Health and Nutrition Volunteers: Training Guide

"[E]ffective behaviour change work is not about telling people what they should be doing; it is about understanding their situation and perspective and then, using such insights, motivating and supporting them to adopt the desired behaviours. Using such an approach requires having specific communication and facilitation skills."



Published by ADRA Yemen with support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), this training guidance aims to increase the effectiveness of interpersonal social and behaviour change (SBC) communication activities conducted at the community level. It intends to ensure that people who promote the desired behaviours, such as community health and nutrition volunteers: understand the importance of effective communication; know what helps adults to learn; are able to use the key communication and facilitation techniques well; are able to effectively conduct home visits / individual counselling and facilitate group sessions; and know how to use communication materials effectively.



The training is designed as a three-day participatory learning event. Its first part focuses on facilitation and communication skills that are essential for effective behaviour change work. As the training progresses, there is less and less new information and more space for participants to practice what they have learnt. Many sessions are interlinked - for example, using the Negotiated Behaviour Change approach is practiced during the session on Home Visits, using communication materials is covered during Group Sessions, and verifying people's understanding is part of a session called Giving a Talk.



The resource outlines the sequence of the learning sessions, including the allocated time. The schedule was designed with the understanding that people get tired when attending multi-day training sessions; therefore, the second and third days are shorter. One might consider also organising a refresher training focused on how the participants can address the key weaknesses in their skills.



While the guide was originally designed for ADRA Yemen's health and nutrition interventions, it can also be used by other non-governmental or governmental actors in different countries. The guide is intentionally provided as a Word document so that it can easily be adjusted to particular contexts.