In a competitive bid to select the ideal communications partner to help the Maldives design and implement its national Drug Abuse Prevention campaign, UNICEF Maldives selected Ogilvy Action amidst many other award winning Sri Lankan and international agencies for this significant project.

Ogilvy Action’s strategic input and wealth of collective experience in carrying out a programme of this magnitude and sensitivity in addition to their in-depth knowledge of the Maldivian youth and culture came in good stead in this selection.

A strategic creative team lead by the Company’s CEO Sandya Salgado, left for a 5 day workshop that planned and strategized the campaign with many stakeholders coming together to give their very personal experience and input.

The workshop was planned and implemented by UNICEF with close collaboration with their project partners ‘Journey’ (a movement initiated by recovering addicts) and The National Narcotics Control Bureau of Maldives. Many other stakeholders participated in this very crucial workshop in order to plan the way forward for the Drug Abuse Prevention campaign for the Maldives. Also participating in the workshop were school children, NGOs involved in prevention and counseling as well as the Police Department and Dhiraagu - the National Telecom Company .

Exactly a year ago, Ogilvy conceptualized, captured and documented this issue when a group of recovering addicts came together in Malé, to give voice to their experiences through a rock concert named ‘Revival’. The documentary delved deep into understanding the psychosis of the drug users, their deepest fears and aspirations.

The new campaign strategised and conceptualized with a wealth of input from the participants of the workshop, will be launched and implemented in Malé and the Atolls very shortly. The campaign will be created in Divehi, the local language in the Maldives.