To eliminate as many as seven Neglected Tropical Diseases that could affect 1.4 billion people by 2020, spreading the word was Task One. It was also imperative to garner substantial funds to make the programme truly viable. The communication had to reach deep into the hinterland and take cognisance of varying literacy, language and economic factors.

The goal of advancing immunisation through Truth & Trust and enabling vaccine access and uptake to improve lives resonated with us. We charted out a multi­-layered strategy that co-­opted governments, corporate houses, media and celebrities to build a strong blueprint for education, behavioural change and advocacy.

We set the stage by curating thought‐leadership opportunities across media for key spokespersons. Special Envoy and former President of Ghana, Mr John Kufuor was one such powerful voice. We then handpicked our celebrity ambassadors to provide mass appeal, generate curiosity and engage actively with target groups. For our global campaign, for example, we secured Indian celluloid icons Priyanka Chopra and Abhishek Bachchan as our awareness champions.

We organised familiarisation trips in NTD‐endemic regions, launched powerful online viral content and brought on board corporate, political and media partners to amplify the campaign’s efforts. In India alone, we orchestrated the country’s largest mass drug administration campaign involving 450 million people to wipe out filaria.

At the heart of the campaign’s success is a thought‐through multilateral communications matrix that retains the NTDs at the top of governance agendas. This helps leverage influence and build support with policy makers, country figureheads and national ministries. We are committed to a proactive and preventive people-­centred healthcare approach and strongly believe that on­ point messaging can overcome all odds.