On July 22, 2024, Project AMMA was launched in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, under the Government of India’s Anemia Mukt Bharat initiative, marking a significant step in the fight against maternal anemia. The event, attended by a consortium of partners, marked the beginning of a collaborative journey to address one of Uttar Pradesh’s most pressing public health challenges.

Project AMMA aims to tackle anemia among pregnant women and adolescent girls by addressing its complex behavioural, social, nutritional, and systemic roots. The initiative includes regular hemoglobin screening through the health system, tailored counselling by frontline workers, and innovative solutions to improve iron and folic acid (IFA) supplementation adherence using Human-Centered Design. Guided by an implementation science approach, Project AMMA is creating scalable, evidence-based solutions that can be integrated into the existing antenatal care platform and community structures, ensuring long-term impact.

The project is jointly implemented by a strong consortium of partners. Vitamin Angels anchors the initiative, providing strategic oversight, technical support, and coordination across all components. A panel of technical and clinical experts from Kanpur Obstetrics and Gynaecological Society (KOGS) offers strategic guidance to district health officials, strengthening program design, implementation, and advocacy. Chhatrapati Shahu Ji Maharaj University (CSJMU) brings academic strength, engaging faculty and students in grassroots outreach, awareness generation, and mobilization.

On-ground implementation is led by the Association for the Prevention of Blindness (APB), a leading not-for-profit health institution known for combining medical excellence with community engagement. Their role spans capacity building of frontline workers, implementing social and behaviour change interventions, and generating real-time learning. ARTIST For Her, a Bengaluru-based women’s health institute, supports by empowering frontline workers to do nutritional assessments followed by tailored counselling of pregnant women using the FIGO (International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics) Nutrition Checklist. EzeRx, the technology partner, supports frontline workers with mass hemoglobin screening with their non-invasive digital hemoglobinometer. 

Together, the Project AMMA consortium is working to strengthen anemia prevention and build healthier futures for women and girls in Uttar Pradesh.

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