CALL FOR ABSTRACTS

Onsi Sawiris School of Business at The American University in Cairo, Egypt, November 10–12, 2026

Behaviour Change for Sustainable Social Impact:

Integrating Policy, Community, and Individual Action

 

Main Conference - November 10 - 12, 2026 --> These are the dates where your abtract can be presented

For the best information and instructions on this call, please download the PDF which can be viewed here

About the African Social Marketing Association

The African Social Marketing Association (AfSMA) is a growing community of professionals and academics across the continent who are enthusiastic and passionate about social marketing and about leveraging social marketing techniques to address the numerous social challenges facing Africa and Africans. The AfSMA has a focused agenda of bringing together social marketing (SM), and social and behaviour change (SBM) practitioners, academics, researchers, and policy makers, including macro stakeholders such as governments, NGOs, multilateral organizations, and donors. The association seeks to help build capacity and nurture the social marketing space in Africa creating an output which would be a sustainable cadre of expertise to support the scale of more effective social marketing programs and interventions on the continent. The AfSMA is a registered International Society affiliated with the International Social Marketing Association (iSMA), which provides AfSMA members with the benefits of a global network of stakeholders in the social marketing space.

Explaining Social Marketing

Social marketing seeks to develop and integrate marketing concepts with other approaches to influence behaviours that benefit individuals and communities for the greater social good. Social marketing practice is guided by ethical principles. It seeks to integrate research, best practice, theory, audience, and partnership insight, to inform the delivery of competition sensitive and segmented social change programmes that are effective, efficient, equitable and sustainable. (Consensus definition by the boards of the International Social Marketing Association [iSMA], European Social Marketing Association [ESMA], and Australian Association of Social Marketing [AASM]. According to the joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS)¹, social marketing has become increasingly popular among governments and donors as a way of addressing serious health issues in developing countries. In Africa, social marketing techniques have been used in addressing a wide range of challenges from key health-related issues such as family planning, HIV/AIDS, general pandemic prevention protocols, and uptake of vaccines and nutrition to environmental and resource conservation, civil engagement, and gender-based violence. One of the earliest applications of Social Marketing (SM) worldwide, was Contraceptive SM that formed part of family planning programmes, which started in Egypt in 1978², just a few years after the discipline of SM came into existence in 1971³.

The African Social Marketing Association Conference (AfSMAC 2026)

The African Social Marketing Association Conference (AfSMAC 2026) is organized by the African Social Marketing Association (AfSMA), a regional affiliate of the long established International Social Marketing Association (iSMA) and our partners at FUSE. The conference will be hosted in collaboration with Onsi Sawiris School of Business at The American University in Cairo, Egypt from November 10-12, 2026. The conference takes place every two years and is a celebration of positive behaviour change and effective work tackling major African health, environmental, and social issues.      

As the second event of its kind in Africa, it aims to bring together over one hundred academics, practitioners, and social policy makers from across the continent, and from around the world to consider how social marketing, social enterprise, innovation and behaviour change practice more broadly, can help solve the big social, health, economic, security, and environmental challenges we all face. The conference will consist of a half-day of training workshops followed by a two-day conference. The conference will present double-blind peer reviewed research, case studies, projects, discussions, panels, and interactive sessions from leading experts in social marketing, behaviour and social change, public health, health communication, environmental sustainability, and a wide range of other disciplines which further positive social and behaviour change.

The programme will include training workshops, double-blind peer-reviewed presentations, interactive sessions, and networking opportunities for researchers, practitioners, and stakeholders.

Submissions from NGOs, government agencies, academic staff, students, the not-for-profit sector, social enterprises, and the for-profit sector are welcome under any of the following five submission types:

• Research / evaluation submissions – 20-minute presentation
• Intervention / case study submissions – 20-minute presentation
• Interactive session / workshop submissions – 45-minute session
• Poster submissions – A1 poster display space

Conference Tracks and Descriptions

The conference welcomes papers across the following ten (10) tracks.

Conference Track	Description / Focus
Mainstreaming social marketing: policy, systems, and advocacy	Policy-driven and systemic approaches to embed social marketing principles into governance, health, environment, and community programmes. Includes work on policy integration, national and regional strategies, and advocacy campaigns. Examples: • Policy frameworks for embedding social marketing across sectors • National behaviour change strategies • Advocacy campaigns that integrate multi-sector stakeholder engagement
Building resilience amidst funding cuts	Approaches to sustaining impactful social marketing programmes in resource-constrained environments. Focus on innovation, partnerships, and scaling approaches to maintain or grow impact despite reduced budgets. Examples: • Resource optimisation and cost-effective programme design • Leveraging private sector and for-profit organizations’ support • Community-led initiatives filling service gaps
Health and Well-being	Non-communicable and communicable disease research, implementation, and evaluation. Action at policy, strategy and operational programme delivery levels using Social Marketing, Social and Behaviour Change Communications (SBCC) or other behaviour change tools. Examples: • Disease prevention and treatment (HIV/AIDS, Malaria, vaccination, maternal health) • Nutrition and physical activity programmes • Mental health promotion and stigma reduction • Substance misuse prevention and harm reduction • Pandemic preparedness and lessons learned
Global climate change, environmental protection, overconsumption, and sustainability	Research and programme implementation addressing environmental and consumption challenges. Includes sustainable production/consumption, ecological protection, and links to health using social marketing. Examples: • Sustainable farming and fishing initiatives • Resource conservation campaigns • Species protection programmes • Behaviour change to reduce overconsumption
Social marketing for Corporate Social Responsibility and brand purpose	Exploring the intersection of corporate responsibility, brand purpose, and social marketing. Includes case studies and research on businesses driving positive social and behaviour change. Examples: • Corporate sustainability campaigns • Cause-related marketing partnerships • Business-led behaviour change initiatives
Combating mis- and dis- information	Strategies for addressing false or misleading information that undermines positive social programmes. Includes digital literacy, media regulation, and safeguarding using social marketing. Examples: • Campaigns to improve information literacy • Reducing cyberbullying • Countering misinformation on health or climate issues
Promoting equity and equality	Strategies to increase equity and equality in terms of gender, age, race, disability, nationality and geography. Includes work addressing poverty, rural development, and anti-discrimination. Examples: • Reducing rural–urban disparities • Access to education and health care services • Anti-xenophobia and anti-racism campaigns
Learning from Africa on advancing theory, methods, measurement, and evaluation for impact	Showcasing African innovation and leadership in advancing theory, methods, and evaluation in social marketing. Examples: • Innovation and new theories • Systems thinking approaches • Critical social marketing analyses • Evaluation frameworks developed in African contexts
Interdisciplinary and cross-sector action to influence behaviour for social good, encourage community engagement and well-being	Cross-disciplinary and cross-sector partnerships to address complex social and behavioural issues, promote community engagement, and foster sustainable interventions. Examples: • Community empowerment projects • Multi-stakeholder partnership management • Skills integration across sectors
Digital, technological and Artificial Intelligence: Implications for Behaviour Change	Exploring the effects of digital platforms, emerging technologies, and AI on social behaviour and behaviour change programmes. Examples: • AI in health communication • Digital community engagement platforms • Technology-driven monitoring and evaluation

Networking Opportunities

The conference provides delegates with opportunities to connect with ‘their tribe’. Researchers, practitioners, and stakeholders within specific social marketing and behaviour change areas can network, establish collaborative projects, share knowledge and experiences, and connect with potential funders.

Post-conference Publishing Opportunities

All submissions will undergo rigorous double-blind peer review by experts in social marketing and behaviour change. Abstracts of accepted submissions will be published in the conference proceedings with an ISBN number. Selected papers will be invited for publication in a special issue of a leading journal. An accredited journal is being secured for AfSMAC2026 special issue for papers which meet the journal requirements. To stay updated, visit the conference website https://wsmconference.com/cairo-2026

Submission Deadline: Friday, 24 April, 2026 at 11:59 PM GMT