Dietary IntakeEMPOWERNCT07746791
Advancing Female University Students' Health Through Mobile Technology in Ethiopia
A study testing Behavioural change intervention will be provided through mobile application and Routine care in people with Dietary Intake and Sexual and Reproductive Health, run by Bahir Dar University at 1 site in Ethiopia.
Trial summary
Background: Female university students in Ethiopia experience a high burden of sexual and reproductive health, nutrition, and psychosocial problems, exacerbated by limited access to essential health services and support. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Any age, women onlyHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Dietary Intake, Sexual and Reproductive Health, Psychosocial Wellbeing
- What is being tested?
- Behavioural change intervention will be provided through mobile application and Routine care
- Type of treatment
- Lifestyle or therapy programme
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 880 participants
- Where
- 1 siteEthiopia
- Study dates
- 1 Aug 2026to 30 Jun 2028
- Phase
- Interventional
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages Any age
- Women only
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Child, Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- Regular undergraduate female university student will be included in the study.
- First year female students will be included in the study.
Who cannot join
- Students who have no mobile phone will be excluded from the study.
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.
Elenie A Mengesha, PhD contact
Ethiopia1 site, 1 recruiting
- Recruiting
Bahir Dar University
Bahir Dar, Amhara, 79
Yeshalem Mulugeta Demilew, 0918783819, yeshalem_mulugeta@yahoo.com
About this study
Official title: Advancing Female University Students Sexual and Reproductive Health, Nutrition, and Psychosocial Well-being Through Mobile Technology Interventions in Ethiopia
Background: Female university students in Ethiopia experience a high burden of sexual and reproductive health, nutrition, and psychosocial problems, exacerbated by limited access to essential health services and support. Mobile technology provides an opportunity to deliver accessible, evidence-based health interventions.
Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of a mobile technology-based intervention in improving SRH, nutrition, and psychosocial well-being among female university students in Ethiopia.
Read more
Methods: A concurrent mixed-methods study will be conducted among first-year female university students. Baseline quantitative and qualitative assessments will identify needs, barriers, and facilitators. A randomized controlled trial will evaluate a comprehensive mobile health education intervention delivered monthly. Quantitative data will be analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics, while qualitative data will undergo thematic analysis.
Expected Outcomes: Improved sexual and reproductive health, dietary practices, and psychosocial well-being among female university students.
Duration and Budget: The project will be implemented over the proposed study period with a total budget of 1,208,564 Ethiopian birr.
Read the detailed description
This is a mobile technology based interventional study to improve sexual and reproductive health, nutrition, and psychosocial wellbeing of female university students.
- Being tested
- Behavioural change intervention will be provided through mobile application, Routine care
- Keywords
- Dietary intake, SRH, Ethiopia, Psychosocial wellbeing
- Medical subject headings
- Coitus
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Behavioural change intervention will be provided through mobile applicationBehavioural
Also called Group one
Behavioural change intervention will be provided through mobile application to improve sexual and reproductive health, nutrition, psychosocial, and appropriate digital use.The intervention packages or contents of the intervention will be developed based on the survey finding. Content of the intervention will include appropriate digital use, the basics of SRH, adolescent nutrition, psychosocial wellbeing, risk factors, and prevention measures. Nutrition messages will include nutrient requirements, the benefits of a healthy diet, the dietary habits of adolescents, the adverse consequences of junk food consumption, short- and long-term consequences of taking unhealthy diet. Possible solutions to improve dietary intake. A simple message about detailed description of the contents of the intervention will be delivered monthly through mobile technology for three consecutive years. Feedback will be collected from students after delivery of message to make sure whether students read or not.
Routine careBehavioural
Students in the control group will receive message provided through gender office.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| M-health intervention | Experimental | The intervention will address key components of adolescent health, including appropriate and responsible digital technology use, the fundamentals of sexual and reproductive health (SRH), adolescent nutrition, psychosocial well-being, health-related risk factors, and preventive measures. Intervention content will be developed in a concise and age-appropriate format and delivered monthly via mobile technology over a period of three consecutive years. Following each message, feedback will be collected from participating students to assess message receipt, exposure, and whether the content has been read. This process will also facilitate monitoring of students' engagement with the intervention throughout the study period. Receives: Behavioral: Behavioural change intervention will be provided through mobile application |
| Routine education | Active comparator | Control group will receive education provided by universities clinics and gender office. Receives: Behavioral: Routine care |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Dietary intake
Dietary intake will be the primary outcome and will be measured using food frequency questionnaire. Students who have a higher score for healthy foods will be considered as having appropriate dietary practice, otherwise not.
Measured: Baseline assessment will be done from August 1-September 30, 2026 (8 weeks) and endline assessment will be done from April to May 2028 (8 weeks).
Sexual and reproductive health
Sexual and reproductive health will be the primary outcomes and will be assessed using questionnaires.
Measured: Baseline assessment will be done from August 1-September 30, 2026 (8 weeks) and endline assessment will be done from April to May2028 (8 weeks) .
Psychosocial well-being
Psychosocial well-being will be the primary outcomes of this studyand will be assessed using questionnaires.
Measured: Baseline assessment will be done from August 1-September 30, 2026 (8 weeks) and endline assessment will be done from April to May2028(8 weeks) .
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted5 Aug 2026
- Study start1 Aug 2026
- Primary completion30 Jun 2028 (estimated)
- Study completion30 Jun 2028 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Publications (7)Papers the sponsor has linked to this study.
- Other trials for Dietary IntakeStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Prevention
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Model description
- A two-arm parallel cluster randomized controlled trial will be conducted to assess the effect of mobile technology interventions on enhancing sexual and reproductive health, nutrition, and psychosocial Well-being among Female University Students in Ethiopia.
- Masking
- Single blind
- Who is masked
- Outcomes assessor
- Enrolment
- 880 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- Bahir Dar University
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Yeshalem Mulugeta Demilew, Bahir Dar University
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07746791
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- School of Public health, BDU
- Other IDs
- BDU/20/2025
- Acronym
- EMPOWER
- Status last verified
- Sep 2026
- First submitted
- 28 Jul 2026
- Last updated
- 29 Sep 2026
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- Yes
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- No: For security purpose
Publications
Admassu TW, Wolde YT, Kaba M. Ethiopia has a long way to go meeting adolescent and youth sexual reproductive health needs. Reprod Health. 2022 Jun 13;19(Suppl 1):130. doi: 10.1186/s12978-022-01445-3.
PubMed 35698082Kassa GM, Degu G, Yitayew M, Misganaw W, Muche M, Demelash T, Mesele M, Ayehu M. Risky Sexual Behaviors and Associated Factors among Jiga High School and Preparatory School Students, Amhara Region, Ethiopia. Int Sch Res Notices. 2016 Jun 15;2016:4315729. doi: 10.1155/2016/4315729. eCollection 2016.
PubMed 27403456Ejtahed HS, Mardi P, Hejrani B, Mahdavi FS, Ghoreshi B, Gohari K, Heidari-Beni M, Qorbani M. Association between junk food consumption and mental health problems in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Psychiatry. 2024 Jun 12;24(1):438. doi: 10.1186/s12888-024-05889-8.
PubMed 38867156Hilger J, Loerbroks A, Diehl K. Eating behaviour of university students in Germany: Dietary intake, barriers to healthy eating and changes in eating behaviour since the time of matriculation. Appetite. 2017 Feb 1;109:100-107. doi: 10.1016/j.appet.2016.11.016. Epub 2016 Nov 15.
PubMed 27864073Habte A, Dessu S. The uptake of key elements of sexual and reproductive health services and its predictors among rural adolescents in Southern Ethiopia, 2020: application of a Poisson regression analysis. Reprod Health. 2023 Jan 12;20(1):15. doi: 10.1186/s12978-023-01562-7.
PubMed 36635708Abrha K, Worku A, Lerebo W, Berhane Y. Sexting and high sexual risk-taking behaviours among school youth in northern Ethiopia: estimating using prevalence ratio. BMJ Sex Reprod Health. 2019 Apr 27:bmjsrh-2018-200085. doi: 10.1136/bmjsrh-2018-200085. Online ahead of print.
PubMed 31030185Muntean N, Kereta W, Mitchell KR. Addressing the Sexual and Reproductive Health Needs of Young People in Ethiopia: An Analysis of the Current Situation. Afr J Reprod Health. 2015 Sep;19(3):87-99.
PubMed 26897917