The use of human-centered design in technology uptake is increasingly crucial for promoting sexual and reproductive health rights (SRHR) of women and girls.
This approach places people at the core of the design process, ensuring technology is developed with the end-user in mind. Human-centered design begins by understanding the needs, aspirations, and challenges of the target audience.
This entails engaging directly with women and girls to comprehend their experiences and preferences, and using this information to inform the design of technology solutions accessible and relevant to them.
By involving women and girls in the design process, the resulting technology is more likely to meet their needs.
In the current digital era, technology plays a crucial role in promoting the SRHR of women and girls. However, for technology to effectively serve its purpose, it must be designed with the end-user in mind.
By involving women and girls in the design process, technology solutions can be made accessible and relevant, which can ultimately increase their adoption and acceptance. Through their participation in the design process, technology solutions can be tailored to meet their specific needs and challenges. This involvement empowers them to have ownership.
The development of AskDoki, an mHealth application by Amref Health Africa, is an exemple that highlights the importance of human-centered design in promoting SRHR. By directly engaging with young people and the application's end-users, Amref was able to understand their needs and preferences, which enabled them to design a solution that is relevant and accessible.
AskDoki offers personalised information and support concerning SRHR needs, including contraception, HIV prevention, and menstrual health. Additionally, the application addresses the need for privacy and confidentiality, which is crucial for young people seeking information on SRHR.
The application has gained popularity among youth aged 15-19 in Kenya, receiving positive feedback for its user-friendly interface, comprehensive content, and ability to provide personalised information.
Human-centred design can play a crucial role in addressing gender-based violence (GBV), which can have severe negative impacts on women's sexual and reproductive health. By engaging with GBV survivors, we can develop technology solutions that provide support and resources to survivors and facilitate the reporting and response to GBV incidents. One important resource on GBV is the Tracking the Girl application developed by Amref.
This app tracks girls who have escaped female genital mutilation and child early and forced marriages, and follows them through various life stages every six months until their 25th birthday. The app helps ensure school retention, transition to secondary school, and engagement in livelihoods. By maintaining constant contact with the girls through the app, we can stay up-to-date with the happenings of their lives, and any challenges they face after community-led alternative rites of passage can be reported in real-time, allowing for immediate solutions to be sought.
-The writer works at Amref Health Africa.
