April 1st Campaign 2024

The April 1st Campaign 2024 aimed to reduce the social acceptance and value ascribed to tobacco use through various strategic initiatives. The campaign was executed across multiple platforms and locations, reaching a wide audience and achieving significant impact.

The primary objective of the campaign was to diminish the societal value placed on tobacco use. This was pursued through a series of town campaigns, media engagements, and community outreach programs.

Methodologies

The campaign utilized diverse methodologies to ensure broad outreach and engagement:

• Town Campaigns: Conducted in 22 towns across Sri Lanka.
• Library and Railway Station Displays: Anti-tobacco messages were displayed in 80 libraries and 100 railway stations.
• Children’s Clubs: 15 children’s clubs conducted the campaign within their communities.
• School Campaigns: The campaign was executed in 3 schools.
• Media Campaigns: Included both social media and traditional media channels.

Town Campaigns

The town campaigns reached a total of 75,000 people across various districts, including Colombo, Kurunegala, Nuwara Eliya, Jaffna, Batticaloa, Kandy, Matara, Matale, Galle, Vavuniya, Polonnaruwa, Rathnapura, Kalutara, and multiple locations within Hambantota.

Media Campaigns

The media campaigns were comprehensive and multi-faceted:

• Advertisements and Articles: Published 3 advertisements and 1 newspaper article across notable newspapers such as Virakesari, Thinakkural, Lankadeepa, Tamil Mirror, and Uthayan.
• TV and Radio Integrations: The campaign was featured in 3 morning TV shows on ITN and Shakthi TV, and broadcasted on Hiru FM.
• Social Media Outreach: Posts were published on the Hiru Gossip page, reaching 15,000 people, and on 6 other social media pages, reaching 7,000 people. Additionally, 6 celebrities supported the campaign by changing their cover photos to campaign messages.

Community Engagement

The campaign successfully engaged with local communities through children’s clubs and schools, creating a grassroots movement against tobacco use. The messages displayed in public libraries and railway stations further amplified the campaign’s reach and impact.

Overall, the April 1st Campaign 2024 demonstrated a robust effort by ADIC, Sri Lanka, to reduce the societal acceptance of tobacco use, leveraging a combination of community engagement and media strategies to achieve widespread impact.