WhatsApp and non-profit Girl Effect have teamed up for a great interactive and educational tool – ‘Bol Behen‘. An AI-powered chatbot, Bol Behen aims to answer all the health queries that girls and young women have but are embarrassed or hesitant to ask. Bol Behen is a great educational and awareness platform that opens the doors to an open discussion about women’s health, otherwise wrapped in taboos and myths.
Bol Behen In Detail
The term Bol Behen translates to ‘Ask Sister’ or ‘Speak Sister’, which essentially speaks for what the chatbot represents – a digital older sister who’s been there and done that. This creates an air of comfort, familiarity and community, encouraging girls and young women to open up and ask their queries. The chatbot is a safe space and will keep all conversations private. Girls can ask the bot any question about physical health, reproductive health, sexuality, love and relationships; it’ll revert with fact-based answers and not dabble in myths and taboos. Bol Behen is equipped to answer in both Hindi and English, thereby eliminating language as a barrier to its accessibility. This tool is a great initiative in the direction of empowering girls and young women to take their health into their own hands, voice their concerns and raise their doubts. Girls must learn from a young age to not be ashamed of their sexual and reproductive health and not associate it with myths and taboos.
Accessing Bol Behen is fairly simple and can be done in one of two ways. You can either use WhatsApp and text ‘Hi’ at +91-730449661 or visit the invite link to start chatting with Bol Behen. While the platform is meant for all girls and women, its primary aim is to be able to reach those who stay in regions with low digital literacy; areas where a slower internet connection and lower-end smartphones make access to credible sources of information difficult. Bol Behen’s availability on WhatsApp ensures that anyone in any area can successfully access it.
Bol Behen was first launched in 2020 on Facebook messenger, making this the chatbot’s second outing with a Meta-owned company.
