Social and Behavior Change Checklist for Costed Implementation Plans

Written by: Jvania Cabiness, Breakthrough ACTION Program Officer II

Well-planned, well-funded, and effectively implemented social and behavior change (SBC) initiatives are critical to fulfilling Family Planning 2020 (FP2020) pledges. Breakthrough ACTION developed the Essential Elements for Costed Implementation Plans: Social and Behavior Change Checklist to support governments, donors, and implementing partners in ensuring best practices in SBC are strategically integrated into—and appropriately budgeted for—in family planning (FP) Costed Implementation Plans (CIPs).

Derived from proven and promising practices, the SBC Checklist outlines the key components that contribute to the successful design, implementation, and evaluation of SBC interventions: formative research; SBC strategy development; understanding audiences; SBC intervention design and messaging; participatory design and pretesting; and monitoring, evaluation, and learning. The SBC Checklist also provides a comprehensive definition of SBC, includes a glossary of SBC terminology, and highlights key resources for developing FP SBC strategies and interventions.

A CIP Task Force can use the SBC Checklist throughout the CIP planning and development phase and then complete it before the CIP is finalized. During the CIP review, the checklist can be used to verify if SBC activities are on track and/or how they can be revised if expected outcomes are not being met.