Background: The effectiveness of the insecticide- Results: In six months, the project achieved an
treated bed net in reducing the morbidity and uptake rate of 1.10 ITN per month, per 1000
mortality associated with malaria has been proved at population, and a 6.5% coverage of the target
all levels of malaria transmission. Several models on population. Most, 208 (67%), of the paid up sales
how to achieve massive coverage have been were achieved at the well-child clinic and the
suggested, but social marketing of the nets is highly antenatal clinic of the health facilities that serve the
favoured for its sustainability. community. Buyers in the two lower socioAim:
To report the experience of a small-scale economic quartiles bought only about one third of
social marketing project for insecticide-treated bed the nets. Members of the community were
net in a semi-urban community in south-south predominantly farmers/fishermen, but only 19
Nigeria. (10%) of the buyers of the nets identified
Methods: The social marketing project was themselves as such.
established in 2003 in Egbema, a semi-urban Conclusion: The study shows that the use of social
community in Rivers State, with a population of marketing for promoting the use of ITN for malaria
47,000. A descriptive cross-sectional study design control is slow in a poor community.
was used for the study, with the sales records of the
project and a structured, interviewer-administered Key words: Social marketing, Insecticide-treated
questionnaire as study tools. The sales records were bed net, Malaria control, Uptake rate, South-south
analysed to assess the performance of the project, Nigeria
while the questionnaire was used to collect data on