Community Engagement and Accountability
COVID-19 material guidance
Community Engagement and Accountability
COVID-19 has been declared a global health emergency and communities require trustful information. Clear and effective communication and engagement approaches are critical to ensure that fear, panic, and rumors do not undermine response efforts and lead to COVID-19 to spread even more quickly. The Community Engagement Hub provides tools and resources to guide National Societies on how to incorporate community engagement and accountability into your operations.
Language guide: EN (English), FR (French), AR (Arabic), SP (Spanish), PT (Portuguese), RU (Russian), JA (Japanese), ID (Indonesian), SW (Swahili), KO (Korean), VI (Vietnamese), TH (Thai), HI (Hindi), BN (Bengali), TL (Filipino), MY(Myanmar Burmese), ZH (Chinese Simplified or Traditional).
Community Engagement Hub
All material is on the Community Engagement Hub. The Hub will be re-designed soon. For ease of reference, we have compiled all resources below, which are regularly updated with new languages, content, and links, including from partners.
Health Help Desk
Health Help Desk
National Societies' and volunteers' roles will change through the progression of the COVID-19 pandemic in their respective countries and communities, based on which activities to support public health, clinical and health systems activities are likely to be most impactful in their context and with their outbreak dynamics. Access the Health Help Desk for specific guidance.
General COVID-19 guidance
Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Outbreak Guidance
RCCE strategy and planning guidance
Practical guidance for risk communication and community engagement (RCCE)
Practical guidance for Refugees, Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), Migrants, and Host Communities Particularly Vulnerable to COVID-19 Pandemic. Read more: EN
Planning Guide for Adapting Risk Communication and Community Engagement as Public Health and Social Measures Shift
This operational tool will help organizations plan safe in-person community meetings, with RCCE considerations to ensure prevention measures are maintained as public health and social measures shift. Read more: EN
COVID-19 RCCE Strategy Africa
This strategy outlines the approach to RCCE in Africa, including suggested RCCE activities throughout the different phases of preparedness, containment and response. It provides a template for African National Societies to develop their own RCCE strategy and can help with the development of preparedness and response plans. Read more: EN FR
Stigma prevention
Community work
Guidance for National Societies on safe and remote risk communication and community engagement during COVID-19
This guidance note provides clear recommendations to National Societies on how volunteers can carry out face-to-face social mobilization safely, how to advocate for continued access to communities with Governments in the face of movement restrictions and options for remote risk communication and community engagement (RCCE) when face to face access is no longer an option. Read more: EN AR FR RU SP
COVID-19 community guidance for social mobilizers, frontline workers and volunteers
This guide gives advice on how community volunteers can engage with communities and build trust, including what information to share, questions to ask, key messages on COVID-19, and frequently asked questions and answers. IFRC lead with WHO, UNICEF. Read more: EN SP FR VI Korean MY BN ID JA TL MS TH HI ZH_CN ZH_TW
Key Messages and Actions for COVID-19 Prevention and Control in Schools
COVID-19: How to include marginalized and vulnerable people in risk communication and community engagement
A guide with practical actions to take to ensure different vulnerable and marginalized groups are included in RCCE approaches and activities, including women, children, people with disabilities, people with underlying health conditions, refugees and migrants, etc. Read more: EN
Interim IASC Guidance on COVID-19 Preparedness and Response for People on the Move in Humanitarian Camps and Camp-like Settings
Guidance note with advice on how to ensure effective COVID-19 preparedness and response in camps, covering RCCE, surveillance, infection prevention control, site management, health care provision, and case management. Read more: EN
Including migrants and displaced people in preparedness and response activities for COVID-19
Guidance for MENA National Societies on how they can support migrants and displaced people, covering risk factors, information sharing, addressing stigma, managing stress, community engagement and accountability. Guidance can be adapted for other regions. Read more: SP EN ASIA PACIFIC MENA
Collecting community feedback
A guide to run focus group discussions with community volunteers on COVID-19
COVID-19 Rapid assessment tool
This tool provides a list of questions to include in assessment surveys, key informant interviews or knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) surveys. Read more: EN AR Short version (adapted for South Africa Red Cross)
Asia Pacific COVID-19 Rapid Assessment Survey
Community feedback collection form
A simple form that can be used by staff and volunteers to record the rumors/observations/beliefs, questions, suggestions/requests, and acknowledgments/praise shared by community members during social mobilization activities. The form can also be used to record information about social mobilization activities. Read more: EN
Community feedback log sheet
A simple excel spreadsheet that can be used to log and analyse community feedback collected through different channels, including rumours, observations, questions, suggestions and praise. The IFRC version has an additional column for recording information reported to IFRC by National Societies. Read more: EN NS / EN IFRC
Community feedback collection form and log sheet
A simple form for volunteers to record feedback and a excel spreadsheet that can be used to log and analyse community feedback collected through different channels, including rumours, observations, questions, suggestions and praise. Read more: ENG SP
IFRC Feedback Starter Kit
Guide and templates to help National Societies set up a feedback and complaints mechanism, including a spreadsheet for logging data and report templates. Read more: IFRC Feedback Starter kit
Contact Tracing
Contact Tracing for COVID-19
Given the complexity of COVID-19, its global scope, national priorities and National Society capacities, contact tracing may be one option to include in the response plan. This document provides guidance on deciding whether assisting with contact tracing is appropriate, as well as considerations to include within contact tracing initiatives. Read more: EN FR
Social Media
Tips on using social media for COVID-19
Guide to help National Societies use their social media platforms to communicate about COVID-19, including how to share information, how to monitor and respond to rumours and misinformation and how to run online surveys. The document also lists all IFRC social media content and graphics with links to where you can download and edit these into local languages. Read more: EN FR ES
How to Use Social Media to Better Engage People Affected by Crises
A general guide from ICRC, IFRC and OCHA with practical tips and advice on how to use social media effectively to engage with, and be accountable to, affected people. Read more: EN ES(website)
Mainstream media
IFRC COVID-19 communications key messages
Overview of the situation and response, key messages and questions and answers for responding to media inquiries. This is regularly updated so sign up to receive the Newswire service from the IFRC communication team by emailing Benoit.Carpentier@ifrc.org Read more: Key Messages
A guide for the media on communicating in public health emergencies
A guide from BBC Media Action with advice for the media on how they can help audiences during public health outbreaks, outlining the important role of the media in reaching large numbers of people with health information and correcting rumours and misinformation. Read more: EN FR AR BH Ukrainian Swahili
Mobile cinema
COVID-19 Mobile cinema guide and running order
Guide on how to use mobile cinema to provide communities with timely, accurate information about COVID-19, collect feedback from communities and counter misinformation and rumours. NOTE: this should only be used in areas with no active outbreak of COVID-19 Read more: COMING SOON
Training and presentation materials
RC/CEA Training Packages Library
Find a range of global and regional training packages as well as the latest thematic webinars held by IFRC and partners.
COVID-19 IEC Materials
Global Repository of COVID-19 IEC Materials
A global library of COVID-19 IEC materials including infographics, posters, videos and other key IEC materials in different languages.
Other Organisations / Topics
Social Science Research
- Find resources related to social science research and the pandemic on the COVID-19 page of the SSHAP website.
Community Engagement
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Interagency Standing Committee: Find COVID-19 Resources Relating to Accountability and Inclusion here
Contact information
CEA.Geneva@ifrc.org
