Social and Behaviour Change (SBC) Programme

A key part of Social and behaviour change is fostering social responsibility by empowering communities to take ownership of change. Rather than just delivering messages, we actively listen, engage people in the process, and collaborate to develop solutions and alternatives that drive positive transformation. SBC works closely with UNICEF Programmes and line ministries, ensuring that interventions are mainstreamed into existing initiatives and aligned with program priorities to maximize impact and sustainability.

• Routine immunization campaigns are a core component of SBC engagement efforts. In collaboration with health Programmes, SBC works with local health workers, parents, and community leaders to ensure children receive life-saving vaccines, address misinformation, and enhance vaccine uptake.
• SBC collaborates with WASH Programmes, local communities, and schools to promote sustainable water management, hygiene awareness, and improved sanitation practices, creating safer environments for children and families.
• SBC contributes to the integration of Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF) and Early Childhood Development (ECD) approaches into school health and nutrition Programmes, fostering healthy lifelong habits. By working with nutrition and education sectors, SBC promotes optimal feeding practices, and training community health workers to provide counseling on responsive caregiving and early childhood stimulation. Additionally, SBC can drive demand generation for nutrition services by mobilizing communities, tackling myths and misconceptions, and enhancing trust in health systems to improve service uptake.
• Multi service community centers called “MAKANI” serve as a hub of multiple services, ensuring a holistic approach to education, protection, and well-being. SBC Through initiatives like QUDWA, immunization campaigns, and community platforms, engages with children, families, and community leaders to identify challenges and develop locally driven solutions that enhance access to essential services and promote protective behaviours.
• Child protection and SBC adopted the role modeling approach through QUDWA to mobilize communities to address child labor, child marriage, and violence against children and women. By leveraging trusted community networks, including religious leaders, barbers, taxi drivers, municipal police, grandparents, and other influential members, SBC creates safe spaces for discussions, challenges harmful norms, and promotes positive role models to strengthen community-led protection efforts.
• Destigmatizing disability remains a key SBC priority, working closely with education team, families, teachers, Organizations of Persons with Disabilities (OPDs), and local leaders to build inclusive environments. Through targeted training and community dialogues, SBC ensures that children with disabilities have equal opportunities in education and social participation, fostering a culture of inclusion and acceptance.

Social change requires strong networks and collaboration. SBC works with:

• Municipalities, religious leaders, and local organizations to promote inclusion, positive practices and child protection.
• Families and caregivers to ensure children are supported in safe environments.
• Social media campaigns and strategic partnerships with local influencers to amplify outreach, disseminate key messages and engage the community.
• Local mobilization and leverage on existing resources goes beyond just discussions; it encourages people to use shared spaces, local assets, and collective efforts to drive positive change, fostering collaboration, resilience, and sustainability.

People are more likely to connect with stories, emotions, and shared experiences than with mere statistics or instructions. That’s why Social and behaviour change leverages entertainment as a tool to educate, engage, and inspire change in an enjoyable and impactful way.

Here are some creative approaches used in SBC to shift perceptions and foster dialogue:

• Interactive Tools for Engagement – Resources like the QUDWA toolbox, Destigmatizing Disability Toolkit, and SBC Booklet encourage meaningful discussions and promote inclusive mindsets.
• Theater and Role-Playing – Interactive workshops and performances challenge stereotypes, build empathy, and create space for transformative conversations.
• Storytelling and Children's Books – Literature and narratives introduce young audiences to diversity, inclusion, and social change in an engaging, relatable way.
• Media and Video Production – Digital content on social media and multimedia platforms amplifies key messages, reaching audiences through familiar and accessible formats.

By weaving education into entertainment, SBC not only raises awareness but also inspires action, shifts mindsets, and fosters lasting social change.

When tackling social challenges like WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene), child labor, and child marriage, understanding why people behave the way they do is key to creating real change. By listening to communities and exploring what influences their decisions, we can design solutions that make positive behaviours easier and more natural to adopt.

Here’s how behavioural insights help shape better solutions:

• WASH & Hygiene Promotion: Easy-to-Use Hygiene Toolkits – Creating practical guides based on real-life habits to make hygiene practices more accessible for all. Community-Led Solutions – Hosting interactive sessions where communities co-design ways to improve hygiene, ensuring long-term impact.
• Tackling Child Labor: Child Labor (North Lebanon Pilot with child labor taskforce and Tripoli municipality) – Engaging children, caregivers, and local leaders in open discussions to uncover why child labor happens and explore better alternatives. Practical Intervention Tools – Designing realistic, community-driven solutions to reduce child labor and improve children’s well-being.
• Understanding Child Marriage Behaviours: Using behavioural insights to identify key beliefs, social pressures, and economic drivers that influence child marriage. Crafting awareness campaigns and interventions that shift perceptions and offer alternative pathways for girls' futures.

By nudging behaviours in the right direction, we can encourage positive choices that empower communities and create lasting change.

To create sustainable change, capacity building is essential. Strengthening the skills of frontline workers, community leaders, and responders ensures that Social and behaviour change strategies are effectively implemented in diverse contexts, including emergencies, crises, and conflict situations.

Here are key focus areas for capacity development:

• Social and behaviour change – Training teams on evidence-based strategies to shift behaviours, influence social norms, and drive meaningful engagement.
• Interpersonal Communication (IPC) – Equipping individuals with the skills to actively listen, build trust, and communicate effectively in behaviour change efforts.
• AAP, SBC, and PSEA for First Responders – Providing first responders with the tools to ensure Accountability to Affected Populations (AAP), integrate SBC principles, and uphold Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA) in conflict and crisis settings.
• Community Engagement (CE) – Training on inclusive and participatory approaches to ensure that communities are at the heart of program design and decision-making.

By investing in capacity building, we empower individuals and organizations to create sustainable, community-driven change—especially in high-stakes humanitarian contexts.

In times of health crises, Risk Communication and Community Engagement (RCCE) becomes a vital tool for ensuring that communities receive timely, accurate, and actionable information. Social and behaviour change plays a critical role in activating RCCE, shaping messaging that is culturally relevant, trustworthy, and responsive to people’s concerns. By fostering dialogue, addressing misinformation, and engaging community leaders, RCCE helps build trust and encourages protective behaviours that mitigate risks. Ensuring that people are not just informed but also actively involved in decision-making strengthens community resilience and improves health outcomes. For more details on RCCE strategies and implementation, visit Risk Communication and Community Engagement (RCCE) | UNICEF Lebanon

To ensure that Social and behaviour change initiatives create meaningful and lasting impact, we rely on innovative monitoring and evaluation tools that track shifts in attitudes, behaviours, and social norms over time. The Most Significant Change (MSC) approach helps capture real stories of transformation, highlighting how communities evolve through engagement. Tools like QUDWA provide valuable insights into progress in violence reduction and child protection across different settings.

In addition, ongoing analysis of two specialized questionnaires—one for adults and one for children—helps assess public attitudes toward disability and inclusion, ensuring that future SBC interventions are evidence-based and tailored to real needs. Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices (KAP) surveys further support long-term analysis, identifying key behavioural trends and barriers to change.

By continuously gathering feedback, adapting strategies, and strengthening partnerships, SBC interventions remain dynamic, responsive to community needs, and effective in driving sustainable change.