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MOBILE INTEGRATED RESOURCES FORAURAT-WOMEN (MIRA) CHANNELProviding critical MNCH services to women at the bottom of the pyramidThe lack of maternal and child health (MCH)information, communication and services reachingwomen in remote and low resource settings is one ofthe main contributors to India’s high maternalmortality rate of 420/100,000 live births, and under-5mortality rate of 72/1,000 live births. Nineteenpercent, or 56,000, of annual global maternal deathsoccur in India. Only 40% of deliveries occur at ahealth facility and less than half are attended by askilled healthcare provider. Additionally, 22% ofbabies in India are born at low birthweight. To reducematernal and infant mortality and morbidity in India,women, especially those in rural and low-incomesettings, must be provided quality health informationand connected to primary health centers and healthinstitutions.The Millennium Alliance – a new partnership betweenUSAID, the Federation of Indian Chambers ofCommerce and Industry, and India’s Department ofScience and Technology – is promoting technologicalinnovations as possible solutions to addressing India’sdevelopment challenges. In response, ZMQDevelopment, a social enterprise, created the MobileIntegrated Resources for Aurat-Women (MIRA)Channel (formerly branded the Women Mobile LifelineChannel) to bridge the information gap among ruralwomen, help them connect with health services, andempower their decision-making abilities related tocritical health issues.Implementation date: March 2012About MIRA ChannelMIRA Channel is an integrated mobile phone-basedapplication using the Global App platform. It provideslifeline sustainable development tools for low-literatewomen at the bottom of the development pyramid. TheWindows compatible application is available on both Javamobile feature phones and Android smartphonesfeaturing an interactive iconic messaging system thatrequires limited audio and text support.MIRA Channel can be downloaded from the applicationsite or through mobile operators. It is also embeddedon new mobile handsets from OEM manufacturers andpromoted through viral marketing mechanisms ofpartner NGOs. Local (village level) mobile rechargekiosks assist women to download the app.Content is delivered based on users’ needs. Educationaltools, iconic messaging kits, mobile games, mobile soapsand other components are available across dedicatedsub-channels geared towards maternal and child health,reproductive health, family planning, home-basedneonatal care and adolescent girls’ health. The MCHchannel features toolkits on prenatal care and universalimmunization. MIRA Channel also contains tools womencan use to track and manage pregnancy, immunizations,menstrual cycles, family planning and infectionprevention.14 mHEALTH COMPENDIUM | VOLUME 3