MommyKidz

In Bangladesh, there exists a profound lack of non-judgmental safe spaces for individuals to openly discuss their reproductive health and sexual concerns.  This scarcity results in women and girls often refraining from seeking assistance or discussing their sexual problems with anyone. Causing them to suffer for a long time and, in some cases, throughout their lifetimes. This underscores the pressing need for a safe space where anyone can ask anything they want to know about their sexual and reproductive health without fear of stigma or judgment.

There is less scope to get proper information or knowledge about SRH. It becomes difficult for a teenage girl to collect knowledge about SRHR if she does not get it from digital platforms. But there is less scope to get comprehensive knowledge about SRH. Either they are costly or have a language barrier. 

Parents lack in providing SRH education to their children because they do not know how to pass the information to them without hesitation. As in our culture, teenagers, especially girls, do not have much access to mobile phones. They need parents active participation for information, healthcare, or buying commodities.

Child marriage and adolescent pregnancy have less or no SRH support.
In Bangladesh, 51% of girls are married before turning 18, with 22% married before they reach 15. This early marriage situation exposes them to sexual and reproductive health (SRH) issues due to a lack of knowledge and societal constraints. They face a higher risk of contracting STIs as they lack access to SRH information and education on safe practices. A recent UNFPA report reveals an alarming adolescent birth rate of 74 per 1,000 girls aged 15–19. Increasing pregnancy-related complications such as anemia, high blood pressure, pre-eclampsia, eclampsia, bleeding, and obstructed delivery This endangers the lives of adolescent mothers and hampers progress towards the 2030 SDG targets. This highlights the urgent need for comprehensive SRH education and accessible healthcare services for adolescent girls in Bangladesh.

Digital healthcare for SRH is missing to provide and encourage comprehensive digital healthcare for sexual and reproductive health. Also, infertility remains a neglected issue in Bangladesh’s reproductive health policy.

Vaccinations that can lead to a better SRH, like the Human Papillomavirus (HPV), Hepatitis B Vaccine, Rubella (German Measles) Vaccine, Tetanus, Diphtheria, and Pertussis (Tdap) Vaccine, and some other vaccinations never get important, and most of the parents, teenagers, or women do not even have any basic knowledge about those. 

Getting essential commodities like contraception, sanitary napkins, condoms, and emergency pills is hard for women. They hesitate as they are bullied and teased by the local people, even by the shopkeeper.

High Maternal Mortality, Every year, more than 3.5 million women become pregnant, and 64% of them can’t access healthcare information or doctors easily. Unsafe roads, high transportation costs, and long waiting make mothers highly reluctant to visit a doctor. As a result, the preventable maternal mortality rate is still very high. 

MommyKidz is a comprehensive app that provides knowledge, information, healthcare, and commodities on a single platform with a strong community for youth to discuss their sexual and reproductive health. 

MommyKidz provides a strong community as a non-judgmental safe space for teenagers, women, mothers, and parents. They can share, learn, and grow together, as well as get emotional support and even chat with each other. They can ask any kind of sexual or reproductive health question they have and get a doctor's or expert team's reply without spending any money. The user can ask anonymously and ask anything; no one is going to judge them. Now we have more than 40,000 registered users in our community, and Bangla-speaking users from 70 different countries are right now in this community.

Proper knowledge about sexual and reproductive health plays a big role in solving problems. Right now, we have more than 2,000 textual content articles on our platform. But we are going to develop video content, audio content, and some animated videos that we believe are going to have a big impact on providing proper knowledge about sexual and reproductive health and how to take steps to recover from the problem. 

Empowering parents who want to provide their children with proper SRH but hesitate to do so There will be articles and videos on our platform to help them. 

At MommyKidz, we provide affordable and accessible healthcare services for sexual and reproductive health. They can get telemedicine service for only $1. It is also helpful for women facing infertility problems. 

The Zero Rating Service and Emergency Helpline are going to be introduced by MommyKidz. That means teenagers, rural women, or low-income people who cannot afford mobile data will be able to use our app. To target all the girls and women who do not even have smartphones, we are going to introduce our emergency helpline for them. Not only that, we will also create an account for them with their phone number so that we can automatically keep track of their present health condition and risk factors. 

We have different kinds of self-care tools for the user. Period tracker, ovulation tracker, fetal tracker (tracks 280 days of pregnancy with proper information and nutrition), health profile, and many more users are enjoying everyday. Soon, we are going to add vaccination tracker and reminder so that users can get a personalized list of vaccinations and get auto-reminder to give those vaccinations. Also vaginal discharge checklist, checklist for breast examination,  pre-pregnancy or fertility checklist and so many other tools that will enable users to actively engage in their healthcare journey.

Incentives for users to willingly participate in content reading, quizzes, or tasks like giving a vaccination because they are going to get a surprising gift, cash back, or discounts on purchasing commodities from our app. 

E-shops and e-pharmacies allow everyone to purchase any kind of essential product and authentic medicine all over the country with cash on home delivery. It makes commodities more accessible. 

Our solution serves girls, women, expecting mothers, parents, and caregivers. 

Our initiative is directly and meaningfully helping to improve the overall sexual and reproductive health and well-being of young girls, mothers, and parents. 

Basically, we launched our app only one year ago. But within this short period of time, we have connected with more than 40,00 young girls, women, expecting mothers, and parents from all over the country. Recently, we conducted a survey among 5000 users. According to the findings,

•  96% of girls and women are being more educated about overall sexual and reproductive health and wellbeing. 
• 75% of women improved their maternal physical and mental health through our services.
•  83% of users agreed that they now have timely access to all SRH commodities that they had not before. 
• Most importantly, 98% of users state they do not hesitate to ask any question because they have a non-judgmental platform; otherwise, they wouldn't have asked them. 

We launched our telemedicine service three months ago through our mobile app. Till now, we have served more than 2400 girls and women with different kinds of menstrual, maternal, and infertility problems. Surprisingly, more than 40% of those users state they would not have bothered with the problem unless they had gotten this easy-to-access, safe place at a very low cost. However, these are our recent findings from a short-term operation. We are confident that our services are going to have a massive impact on our society. 

The ways are they currently underserved, 

Lack of Access to Information
Limited Healthcare Access
Community Support
Economic Constraints
Lack of Access to essential commodities 

MommyKidz addresses these needs by providing a comprehensive and easily accessible platform. Our users can have a wealth of information and knowledge in our app. Soon there will be highly informative yet enjoyable video content that will also be filled with so much information. For emergency healthcare, we have Q&A where users can ask anything about SRH and get an emergency response from the doctor and expert team. Every day,  we receive more than 480 health inquiries on our platform. Not only that, we have a strong community of 40,000 girls and women who are actively helping and giving emotional support to each other. Economic constraints are not a barrier for us. Soon, we are going to open our app as a zero-rated app. Also, our platform and all other features are totally free for the user now. 

In short, MommyKidz is dedicated to improving the lives of girls and women by addressing their unmet needs and challenges in sexual and reproductive health and ensuring they have the knowledge, support, and resources necessary for a safer and healthier journey for their future lives.

I am the co-founder and CEO of MommyKidz, and my personal experiences have shaped my strong dedication to addressing sexual and reproductive health (SRH) challenges. Having faced my own SRH difficulties as a teenager and young mother, I understand the critical importance of proper healthcare, knowledge, and community support during these stages of life.

Throughout my college and university years, I volunteered with various organizations and delved into the significance of SRH in building a better future. To gain insights into the struggles of underserved communities, I visited slums and garment factories. This direct exposure to their challenges informed our development of free self-care tools for our users.
Despite being a first-time founder, my passion, personal journey, and commitment to creating positive change have equipped me to lead this initiative effectively. My educational background in business and my previous work in the IT industry have solidified my belief in the transformative power of technology in business. I have always advocated for impact-driven businesses, as they offer both career fulfillment and the opportunity to contribute to the success of future generations. MommyKidz reflects these values, and I am determined to make a meaningful impact in the field of sexual and reproductive health.

Our co-founder, Shakor Ahmed, brings over 8 years of experience in the multimedia and technology sectors to MommyKidz. Prior to this, he co-founded another startup called 'Belancer.' His motivation for working on this initiative stems from a deep understanding of the immense challenges that girls and women face, particularly during situations like environmental disasters or conflicts. He is determined to make a positive impact and alleviate their suffering, drawing from his personal experiences as a father who faced maternal health difficulties due to a lack of information. Leveraging his expertise in the technology field, Shakor aims to use innovative solutions to enhance the reproductive health of girls and women.

Our team boasts a wealth of experience and diverse expertise. Both our Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) have accumulated more than 15 years of experience in various fields, enriching our team's capabilities and knowledge. Additionally, our Chief Health Officer (CHO), who has over 3 years of experience as a gynecologist, adds a critical dimension of expertise. Importantly, she is a woman who has personally navigated the complex web of family and social barriers after becoming a mother. These real-life experiences have not only equipped us to understand the issues but also to empathize with them, making our team exceptionally well-suited to address the unique challenges in the field of reproductive health.

We launched our app on September 15, 2022. Within these 12 months, we have more than 40000 registered users on our platform. Our daily retention user rate is 24%, and our monthly average engagement time is 25 minutes. Right now, we have Bangla-speaking users from 70 different countries who are using our app.

• Till now, we have created awareness among 110k people with the help of social media platforms and a few local events. 
• Also, more than 23,000 families have purchased healthcare and commodities with the help of our app and different social media platforms. 
• Our video and images have been viewed by more than 400,000 people.
• In our app, educational articles and contents have been read 12,0000 times. 

What makes MommyKidz innovative is its holistic and user-centric approach to SRH. We offer an all-encompassing platform that not only educates but also supports and connects community members. Our focus on telemedicine, emergency response, and self-care tools like period trackers, vaginal discharge checklists, and pregnancy monitoring sets us apart. We prioritize inclusivity, accessibility, and user engagement, making healthcare readily available. Furthermore, our commitment to data-driven improvements, including the integration of AI for emergency response, showcases our innovative spirit in addressing critical healthcare challenges.

Our solution approaches the problem in a new or significantly improved way because we are not solving a single simple problem. In our pursuit of creating a healthier generation, we are dedicated to empowering an entire community. We understand that puberty, pregnancy, and parenting are interconnected, each playing a crucial role in proper sexual and reproductive health with a well-rounded and informed journey.

We are catalyzing broader positive impacts from others in this space. Almost every digital solution is designed for a certain class of people. Not everyone has the ability to access or afford those apps or services. But at MommyKidz, we ensure everyone can have easy access to our services with or without a smartphone or internet connection. 

MommyKidz will bring a huge positive change to the market. The comprehensive approach we provide can set a new standard for sexual and reproductive health platforms. MommyKidz is addressing puberty, pregnancy, and parenting as an interconnected and continuous circle and emphasizes that to solve the SRH problems, every proposed solution needs to give equal importance to all three elements of this vital circle. In doing so, MommyKidz stands as a departure from the piecemeal approaches commonly found in existing solutions, ultimately benefiting our community and contributing to better overall well-being.

MommyKidz is innovative in the way it combines both new and existing technologies with a new business model to address sexual and re-productive health comprehensively. 

Data-Driven Innovation: The potential integration of AI for emergency response exemplifies how MommyKidz is embracing new technology to further improve the platform. This data-driven approach can enhance the effectiveness and responsiveness of healthcare services, contributing to better patient outcomes.

New Application of Existing Technology: While telemedicine and emergency response services are not new technologies, the way we apply them to solve sexual and reproductive health problems is innovative. We leverage these existing technologies to provide immediate healthcare support to women, girls, mothers, and parents, especially in regions with limited access to healthcare services. 

Self-Care Tools: The comprehensive self-care tools offered by MommyKidz, including period trackers, ovulation trackers, pregnancy monitoring,medication reminders,and so many others yet to come like vaccination trackers, utilize existing mobile technology in a new way. These empower every girl and woman to actively engage with their sexual and reproductive healthcare journeys, taking charge of their own well-being. 

Economic Accessibility: Our partnership with mobile companies to offer a zero rating service for our mobile app represents an innovative strategy aimed at guaranteeing healthcare access for marginalized and underserved communities.

For the next year: 

• 30k Girls will be empowered with all the information, healthcare, and commodities they need. 
• Reach out to 40k parents with all the resources that may assist them in teaching their children about sexual and re-productive health
• Reach 50k rural girls and women with information and low-priced healthcare in their pregnancy journey. 
• Reach 150k rural girls, women, and parents and educate them about our app. 
• Educate parents and community leaders about the devastating effects of child marriage and adolescent pregnancy in Rajshahi and Rangpur, the two major cities in Bangladesh where child marriage rate is very high. 
• Introduce our app in French and English to reach more and more users and reduce the language barrier. 

For next five years: 

• Reach 60% of girls and women in their pregnancies with proper information and healthcare, and reduce 80% of preventable maternal mortality. 
• Eradicate all the superstition and stigma about sexual and reproductive health from society 
• Research and Innovation: Conduct and support research initiatives in collaboration with healthcare institutions to advance the field of sexual and reproductive health, resulting in the development of innovative solutions and technologies.
• Policy Advocacy: Advocate for evidence-based sexual and reproductive health policies at local, national, and international levels, contributing to positive changes in legislation and healthcare access. Reducing
• Disparities: Work to reduce disparities in access to sexual and reproductive health information and services, focusing on marginalized communities and underserved populations. 
•  Educational Partnerships: Establish partnerships with educational institutions to integrate comprehensive sexual and reproductive health education into school curricula, promoting informed decision-making among youth. 
• Mental Health and Well-Being: Expand MommyKidz's support services to include mental health resources, ensuring that individuals receive emotional and psychological support during their sexual and reproductive health journey.

Strategies to achieve those: 

For the Next Year:

Empower 30,000 girls through local workshops and healthcare partnerships.
Reach 40,000 parents with online resources and webinars.
Provide low-cost healthcare to 50,000 rural girls and women through mobile clinics.
Educate 150,000 rural users about the MommyKidz app through community partnerships and school integration.
Raise awareness about child marriage and adolescent pregnancy in Rajshahi and Rangpur.
Translate the app into French and English for international outreach.
For the Next Five Years:

Reach 60% of pregnant girls, reducing maternal mortality by 80%.
Eliminate stigma and superstitions through a national campaign.
Collaborate with research institutions and secure funding for innovation.
Advocate for evidence-based policies at local, national, and international levels.
Reduce disparities with tailored programs for marginalized communities.
Partner with schools to integrate sexual and reproductive health education.
Offer mental health support within the MommyKidz app.

MommyKidz is expected to have a significant impact on the problem of sexual and reproductive health by following this theory of change:

Activities:

• Comprehensive Education: We provide girls, women, expectant mothers, and parents with easily accessible and comprehensive educational content covering sexually transmitted infections (STIs), family planning, prenatal and antenatal care, maternal health, contraception, pregnancy planning, maternal health, adolescent health, parenting, vaccination, reproductive rights, and many more.
•  Non-judgmental-safe Interactive Community: To enhance knowledge, build a support system, reduce isolation, promote peer learning, emotional support, and overall social development, we have built a strong interactive community that is working as a non-judgmental-safe space for teenagers, women, expecting mothers, and parents. Here they can openly discuss their concerns, share experiences, and seek guidance from peers and professionals.
• Telemedicine and Emergency Response: We offer telemedicine services and immediate emergency response through text consultancy, connecting users with healthcare professionals when they need it most. Users without smart phones can also get the proper health information they need. 
• Self-Care Tools: Our self-care tools include a period tracker,  fetal tracker (tracks 280 days of pregnancy), ovulation tracker, and soon going to add vaginal discharge checklist, checklist for breast examination, pre-pregnacy or fertility checklist, vaccination tracker, and so many other tools that will enable users to actively engage in their healthcare journey.
• Economic Accessibility: We are going to have partnerships with mobile data-provider companies to provide zero-rated service for our app, and we are going to start our emergency helpline service soon, which will enable everyone with or without mobile data or smartphone to connect with us. 

Outputs:

• Increased Knowledge: Users have access to vital information, resulting in better-informed decisions about their reproductive health, pregnancy planning, and parenting.
• Immediate Healthcare Support: Telemedicine and emergency response services ensure that users receive timely medical assistance, reducing the risks associated with delayed care.
• User Empowerment: Self-care tools empower users to actively monitor and manage their own sexual and reproductive health. contributing to a sense of control and well-being.
• Strong Community Support: The community aspect offers users emotional support, reducing feelings of isolation and promoting better SRH. 
• Economic Inclusivity: The partnership with mobile phone companies for zero-rating service will make digital healthcare accessible to a broader demographic, overcoming economic constraints.

Outcomes:

• Safer informed Puberty, Pregnancy and Parenting journey: Users experience safer and more informed sexual, maternal or reproductive health. Resulting in healthier future generations. 
• A progressive generation that connects, shares, learns, and grows together in a community: with the help of the non judgemental safe Interactive Community, everyone will share and discuss everything without fear of judgement. As a result, it will develop a progressive generation. 
• Reduced Maternal Mortality: Access to immediate healthcare assistance contributes to a reduction in maternal mortality rates, particularly in underserved areas.
• Improved sexual and reproductive health: Users benefit from self-care tools, community support, and knowledge, leading to better health outcomes during the puberty and pregnancy journey.
• Healthcare Access for All: Economic inclusivity ensures that individuals, regardless of their financial situation, can access essential healthcare support.

Right now, we have 12 employees on our team. 

Full-time employee: 8 
Part-time staff: 4 

In full-time employees we have 2 doctors. 

We are working for 3.5 years on this solution. And we have been building our team for the last 3 years. 

We have different policies and practices to promote gender equality in the workplace. 

• Equal Pay: We ensured equal pay for equal work from the beginning. 
• Period Leave/Work from Home: We provide both period leave and work-from-home opportunities for women who feel discomfort or significant pain during their period. 
• Parental Leave for Men and Women: We have a policy to provide parental leave for both mothers and fathers. 
• Hire mothers with high potential but left jobs to raise a baby: The ‘No one left behind’ agenda will never get the proper justice until we can ensure work opportunities for mothers who left their job due to pregnancy or raising babies. We have appointed two doctors who had left their job for the sake of their families. Right now they work from home and provide text consultancy services for our users. 
• We will also in future hire more teenagers and give them flexible work schedules because the power of youth is inevitable for any organization. 
• Diverse Hiring: We always believe workplace diversity is something that powers up the work environment with diverse ideas. We have a plan to hire a diverse group of people. As we want to serve a diverse group of people without hiring a diverse group of people it will be impossible for us. 

Not only that we also highly recommend gender-responsive products and services and continuously conduct research on them. In our country, girls women and mothers never get the freedom they deserve. Due to massive changes in body and lifestyle, teenagers and mothers need more attention so that they can cope with this new normal. We provide customized products and services to them. And we are trying to improve all of them by collecting feedback from the users. 

Also, our organization has a plan to use inclusive and diverse marketing strategies that challenge gender stereotypes and appeal to a broad range of consumers. To achieve that we have planned some marketing strategies that can challenge gender stereotypes and promote diverse marketing. 

MommyKidz is dedicated to providing value to its key customers and beneficiaries, primarily women, expecting mothers, parents, and children. Here's a breakdown of the products and services we offer, how we provide them, and why they are essential to our users:

1. Products and Services:

Comprehensive sexual and reproductive health information: We offer a wealth of information through articles, guides, and community forums, covering STIs, safe sex, periods, ovulation, vaccination, prenatal care, postpartum care, abortion, infertility care, and so many more. This information is easily accessible through our app.

Premium Subscriptions: Users have the option to subscribe to premium plans, which grant them access to exclusive content, advanced self-care tools, and priority interactions with healthcare professionals.

Virtual Consultations: Users can opt for virtual consultations with healthcare professionals for a fee, ensuring they receive expert guidance and support when needed.

Community and Support: MommyKidz fosters a strong community through forums, support groups, and direct interactions with peers and healthcare professionals. This platform allows users to seek emotional support, share experiences, and connect with others who are navigating similar journeys.

AI-Driven Emergency Response (Future Feature): In the future, we plan to introduce AI technology for immediate emergency response in critical situations. This service aims to save lives and ensure the well-being of mothers and children.

2. How We Provide These Products and Services:
Our platform, the MommyKidz app, serves as the central hub for accessing information, engaging with the community, and utilizing self-care tools.

Users can download the app on their smartphones and access a user-friendly interface that guides them through the available features.

Premium subscriptions, in-app purchases, and virtual consultations are facilitated within the app, making it a convenient and integrated platform for users.

3. Why Users Want and Need Them:
Access to Vital Information: Girls, women, expecting mothers, and parents seek reliable information to ensure a safe sexual and reproductive health journey. MommyKidz fulfills this need by providing a comprehensive knowledge base.

Personalized Support: Users want personalized support during their journey, and our premium subscriptions, in-app purchases, and virtual consultations offer this, catering to individual needs.

Community and Emotional Support: The sense of belonging, emotional support, and shared experiences within our community are essential for users, providing them with a safe space to seek guidance and share their concerns.

Immediate Assistance: In critical situations, our future AI-driven emergency response feature will provide immediate assistance and guidance, potentially saving lives.

Overall, MommyKidz's business model revolves around providing value to its users by addressing their need for reliable information, personalized support, and a strong, supportive community throughout their puberty, pregnancy, and parenting journey.

MommyKidz has a well-thought-out plan for achieving financial sustainability while ensuring our commitment to delivering valuable services to our users. Here's how we intend to fund our work and cover expected expenses:

1. Freemium Model: MommyKidz operates on a freemium model, providing essential maternal and child health information, community support, and self-care tools for free. This free access ensures that we reach a broad user base, including those who may not have the means to pay for premium services.

2. Premium Subscriptions: We offer premium subscription plans that grant subscribers access to exclusive content, advanced self-care tools, and priority interactions with healthcare professionals. These subscription plans generate a significant portion of our revenue.

3. Advertising and Sponsored Content: To support free access for all users, MommyKidz incorporates relevant advertisements and sponsored content related to maternal and child health. This advertising revenue helps offset operational costs.

4. Affiliate Marketing and E-Commerce: We collaborate with affiliate marketing programs and e-commerce platforms to recommend products and services that align with maternal and child health. This not only aids users in making informed purchasing decisions but also generates additional revenue for us.

5. Virtual Consultations: Users can opt for virtual consultations with healthcare professionals for a fee. The revenue generated from these consultations contributes to financial sustainability.

6. Data Monetization: While maintaining strict data privacy measures, MommyKidz explores opportunities to monetize aggregated and anonymized user data for healthcare research and service improvement.

7. Partnerships and Crowdfunding: We actively seek partnerships with healthcare organizations, nonprofits, and government agencies, both for resource sharing and funding. 

Through these diverse revenue streams, MommyKidz plans to become financially sustainable while continuing to provide valuable services and support to teenager, women, expecting mothers, parents on their sexual and re-productive health journey. This approach ensures our long-term commitment to our mission.