Hana Khayry KNOW THE SYMPTOMS

Public Service Campaign:

If Suspecting, Get Tested
INTRODUCTORY PROPOSAL
The containment and elimination of any infection are contingent on the awareness of
individuals, particularly those at risk. In the case of the current COVID-19 pandemic, which can be
traced back to the 2019 outbreak of a novel coronavirus strain in the Chinese city of Wuhan, countries
across the globe found themselves embroiled in debilitating socioeconomic as well as sociopolitical
crises and chasms. The prospect of recovery and risk of decline for each state, accordingly, appear to
be hinged on its population’s awareness of and response to the disease. In a populous country like
Egypt, awareness of the disease among the population is of especially paramount importance as only
through grasping the various interplaying elements of the disease, such as symptoms, transmission
rates, and potential precautionary measures, can we combat it.
Campaign Objectives
In correspondence with the COVID-19 related initiatives by the World Health Organization
(WHO), our campaign will revolve around raising awareness about the virus’ symptoms so that
individuals would be able to know if they may have contracted the disease and seek medical assistance
accordingly. We will therefore adopt an alert-not-alarm approach as we call upon those who suspect
that they have the disease or have been exposed to someone who has it to get tested. This would in turn
assist with the early detection of the virus, facilitating its containment. Accordingly, our campaign will
highlight how the actions of every individual matter and contribute to the well-being of society at large
and that, now more than ever, taking care of our personal health is a priority that cannot be neglected.
Campaign Logistics
Target Audience
On Monday, May 4, 2020, the Head of the Egyptian General Authority for Health Care and
assistant to the Minister of Health Ahmed al-Sobky divulged on how it is “an incomprehensible and
strange thing” that COVID-19 infection rates in rural and informal areas are the lowest in Egypt (Al-
Masry Al-Youm). Paradoxically, however, a study titled “Knowledge, Perceptions, and Attitude of
Egyptians Towards the Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19)” that was published in the Journal of
Community Health on April 21, 2020 revealed that knowledge of the virus was “significantly lower
among older participants, those living in rural areas, with lower educational and monthly income levels”
than that of those living in urban areas. These disparities in both infection and awareness rates thus raise
the question of whether these seemingly low rates of infection in rural and informal areas are simply
part of an unexplained paradoxical reality or are due to undertesting and consequently under-detection.
If the latter scenario is in fact the case, and we assume it is, then this undertesting and under-detection

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may be attributable to the limited awareness or knowledge of the symptoms and thus the belief that there
is no need to get tested. Our campaign’s target audience accordingly will be the populations of rural
areas, and our slogan will be “if suspecting, get tested”, which in the Egyptian dialect would translate to
“Lw Shākak, Ḥalal”.
Partners
We are planning to launch our campaign in partnership with both the WHO and the Egyptian Cure
Bank. The Egyptian Cure Bank, also known as Egyptian Shifa Bank” is a non-governmental organization
(NGO) that seeks to secure access to healthcare and treatment to those who cannot afford their treatment.
Accordingly, its mission and slogan- “together against disease”- aligns with ours as we seek to raise
awareness among those living in rural areas who are predominantly from low-income level groups.
Campaign Components
Logo
For our campaign, we opted to have an icon and type-based logo. The icon component will be of
the top health symbol in its classic red color. The campaign slogan will also be inscribed in an uppercase
sans-serif font that’s simple and sharp, aligning with the campaign’s serious tone.
Media Strategy
In order to ensure that our campaign efficiently reaches our target audience, we are planning on
operating a dual media approach, in which we employ both traditional and social media. We will,
accordingly, utilize the traditional media of radio and television to disseminate our public service
announcements (PSAs) as the populations of rural areas are more likely to have access to these devices
than they are to social media. This is substantiated by the data available on device possessions among
the Egyptian population. For example, in 2018, the number of radio sets in Egypt was computed at 18
million, positioning radio as the second most popular medium in the country (Allam 2018). Device
possession rates are even higher in the case of Egypt’s most popular medium: television (Allam 2018).
In fact, according to the 2019 Egypt in Figures report by the Central Agency for Public Mobilization
and Statistics (CAPMAS), in 2015, 94.3% of Egyptian households were in possession of a color
television. Of rural households in Egypt, furthermore, an estimated 92.7% owned a color television,
and 91.3% had a dish or dish connection (Egypt in Figures 2019, 139). The number of rural
households who possessed a personal computer or laptop, on the other hand, was drastically lower at
20.9% (Egypt in Figures 2019, 139). Furthermore, even though the number of rural households who
owned a mobile phone, another device whereby individuals may access social media, was relatively
high at 89.6%, only 10.1% of total rural households had access to the internet, an internet connection,
or a router (Egypt in Figures 2019, 140).
Radio

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Our campaign’s audio PSAs will be publicized on both private and state radio networks.
Furthermore, in consideration of the fact that our target audience consists of the populations of rural
areas, we will concentrate our promotion efforts to stations where the predominant language of
broadcasting is Arabic and that our target audience are more likely to tune in to. Among our primary
selection of radio stations are Quran Kareem Radio and Nogoum FM (100.6), which is a popular
private FM radio station that airs all-Arabic music format and programs (Allam 2018). Other stations
include the State’s Al Bernameg El ‘Aam (107.4), or General Program, which has a “24-hour
broadcast format to provide round-the-clock programming”, a factor that we are planning to capitalize
on to bolster our campaign’s reach and, consequently, its effectiveness (Allam 2018). Additionally, we
are intending to promulgate our PSAs on Shabaket El Shabab Wel Reyadah (108.0), or the Youth and
Sports Network, which is a popular radio station that discusses “the different social, psychological,
family and health issues related to youth” (Allam 2018). Our campaign’s objective to raise awareness
about the symptoms of COVID-19 accordingly corresponds with the station’s specialty. Shabaket
Radio El Nile (The Nile Radio Network) will also constitute one of our primary platforms as it
encompasses various channels such as Nagham FM (105.3), Mega FM (92.7), Hits (88.2), Sha’abi
(95.0) and Radio Masr (88.7), maintaining a wide-reach with the different segments of society,
particularly the populations of rural areas. This expansive market coverage will secure our campaign
considerable exposure, boosting its efficiency (Allam 2018). Lastly, we will also broadcast our PSAs
on regional radio stations in order to ensure that our message reaches its intended audience. Iza’at al
Qahira al Kubra (102.2), or Greater Cairo Radio Station, which has a 24-hours broadcasting cycle,
quintessentially exemplifies this type of stations (Abdel Rahman 2010, 48). Our PSAs will air between
8:30 am and 10:00 am, 1:30 pm and 2:30 pm, and 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm (rush hour) as at these times,
individuals are more probably to be commuting to and from their workplace or educational institute
and, accordingly, are likely to be listening to the radio. These timings are also the most optimal as
several radio stations’ broadcast shifts start at 6 am and end at 10 pm (Getting around Cairo).
Television
Similar to our strategy for the radio medium, we are planning to propagate our campaign on
both private and state television networks. Our campaign’s will utilize platforms such as the Nile
Television Network, which is operated by the Egyptian Radio and Television Union (ERTU),
broadcasts for 24-hours a day, and is comprised of various specialized channels: Nile News, Nile
Drama, Nile Culture, Nile Sport, Nile Life, Nile Cinema, Nile Comedy, Nile Family, and Nile
Education (Allam 2018). Furthermore, our campaign’s video PSAs will also air on private popular
channels such as Cairo Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), DMC, and Alhayah. This selection of
media outlets would present the campaign with high exposure, expanding its reach and augmenting

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its effectiveness. It also represents a feasible, auspicious range for publicization since, as
aforementioned, the ownership rates of television and dish or dish connection are high among rural
households, and thus our audience would have access to the private channels.
Social Media
In order to assemble a multidimensional, effective campaign, we are planning to employ
social media to publicize and execute our campaign. Our selected social media platforms are
Facebook and Twitter as they are among the three most popular social media in Egypt. In fact,
according to data published by the web traffic analysis website Statcounter, as of April 2020,
Facebook’s share of the social media market in Egypt is estimated at a striking 70.4%, with Twitter
following in third place with an 8.83% market share. We will, moreover, be utilizing the various
specialized features of the platforms to interact with the audience. For example, we will be creating a
picture frame on Facebook that features a motivational phrase and our slogan and that users can add
to their profile picture, allowing them-users- to actively participate in creating a solidifying
communal experience. Our campaign will also feature other interactive posters which we will be
sharing on our Facebook story. The live feature on Facebook is also another element that we are
planning to integrate into our campaign as we invite medical experts to discuss with the audience the
symptoms and proper preemptive and reactive protection measures to take and answer any of their
questions. For our Twitter account, we are planning on composing an interactive infographic, which
we will also be sharing on the campaign’s Facebook feed in order to maximize exposure, that
incorporate both graphic and written visual aids. This is beneficial for a variety of reasons, one of
which is that studies have shown that interactive content is more effective in catching individuals’
attention than static ones (McCoy 2019). In fact, according to data accumulated, tweets that feature
images, in comparison to tweets that do not, receive “18% more clicks, 89% more favorites, [and]
150% more retweets” (McCoy 2019). Another advantage of having interactive content is that they
help ensure that individuals who do not know the language or have some form of reading disability
such as dyslexia are still able to identify the symptoms. Furthermore, in consideration of the fact that
in 2019, the illiteracy rate in Egypt was estimated at 27%, interactive content such as images would
help ensure that individuals who do not know how to read understand the campaign’s objectives and
are able to identify the symptoms (Illiteracy in Egypt 2019). We will also ask users to share with us
in the comment section what they are doing to protect themselves and their community from the
virus; thus, the audience would be able to interact with the initiative as well as with each other. Our
campaign will primarily mobilize two hashtags, one of which is its slogan:
“If_suspecting_get_tested” and “Together_Against_Coronavirus”. Combined, these hashtags
elucidate on and emphasize our campaign’s objective, and as more people share the hashtags, a

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profound collective sense of connectivity and relatability will grow, cultivating a sense of communal
responsibility and empowerment.
Our campaign’s mission is, accordingly, to raise awareness among the populations of rural
areas in Egypt about the symptoms of the novel coronavirus, enabling them to identify the symptoms
when observed and to seek testing. Subsequently, this strategy would bolster testing and detection
efficiency and assist with the containment of the virus.

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References
Abdelhafiz, Ahmed Samir, et al. “Knowledge, Perceptions, and Attitude of Egyptians
Towards the Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19).” Journal of Community
Health, 21 Apr. 2020, Springer Science+Business Media, doi.org/10.1007/s10900-
020-00827-7.
Abdel Rahman, Haidi M.K. Women, Regional Radio and Development: The Role of North
Upper Egypt Radio in the Struggle of Females Towards Development in North Upper
Egypt. May 2010. American University in Cairo, Master’s Thesis,
dar.aucegypt.edu/bitstream/handle/10526/717/2010jrmchaidimkabdelrahman.pdf?seq
uence=1.
Al-Masry Al-Youm. “Egypt’s coronavirus isolation hospitals at maximum capacity: official.”
Translated by Egypt Independent, 5 May 2020, egyptindependent.com/egypts-
coronavirus-isolation-hospitals-at-maximum-capacity-official/.
Allam, Rasha. “Egypt-Media Landscape.” European Journalism Center, 24 July 2018,
Research Gate, dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.34526.74564.
Egypt in Figures. Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS), 2019,
www.capmas.gov.eg/Pages/StaticPages.aspx?page_id=5035.
Egypt Today Staff. “Illiteracy in Egypt decreases, but number still high: official.” 12 Nov.
2019, www.egypttoday.com/Article/1/77697/Illiteracy-in-Egypt-decreases-but-
number-still-high-official.
“Getting around Cairo by Night.” Uber Blog, 17 July 2018, www.uber.com/en-
EG/blog/getting-around-cairo-safely-by-night/.
McCoy, Erin. “Visual Content Marketing for Beginners.” Stukent, 2019,
www.stukent.com/expert-sessions/visual-content-marketing-for-beginners/.
“Symptoms.” Coronavirus. World Health Organization, www.who.int/health-
topics/coronavirus#tab=tab_3.