In a cost-effectiveness study, Dr. Giulia Ferrari and colleagues examine the costs and health impact of prevention of violence against women and girls in six low- and middle-income countries.
Background
Achieving gender equality and women’s empowerment is a major global priority. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the Building the Resilience of Vulnerable Communities in Burkina Faso (BRB) project, an agricultural development program, improved women’s empowerment, as measured by the project-level Women’s Empowerment in Agriculture Index (pro-WEAI).
Methods
This study used a longitudinal, quasi-experimental study design. Participants included both treatment and comparison groups (total N = 751) comprising female members of savings groups and their husbands or main male household member in Burkina Faso. All participants completed the pro-WEAI questionnaire at both baseline and endline. The treatment group received a comprehensive intervention package consisting of agriculture loans and services, microenterprise loans, and education, nutrition education, and women’s empowerment programs including gender-based discussions designed to facilitate p
Stern); Emory University (
Ferguson) There is.emerging interest in couples-based violence prevention programming, and an urgent need for rigorous evidence to inform such approaches.in the Global South. Many couples who experience violence in their relationships may want to stay together and need support and skills to manage their interactions more positively. However, there have been valid concerns raised around the appropriateness of working with couples as part of violence prevention programming. More commonly implemented in the Global South, such approaches tend to use group or community-based formats rather than trained therapists or counsellors. This paper offers a comparative case study on programmes in Nepal and Rwanda that teach and support couples who are working to create and maintain equitable, nonviolent relationships. Both programmes were funded by the United Kingdom (UK) Department for International Development (DFID) under their What Works to Prevent Violence Aga
Stern, Dunkle); London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (
Stern, Heise) [C]ommunity mobilisation strategies as a means to reduce levels of IPV deserve further investigation in rural Rwanda and in other rural settings. Despite promising examples of the strategic use of community activism to shift the patriarchal norms, attitudes, and beliefs that undergird IPV, there is limited understanding of how activism actually translates into reduced violence, including how cultural context and programme implementation may affect impact. Conducted by external researchers as part of What Works to Prevent Violence Against Women and Girls, this evaluation focuses exclusively on the community activism/mobilisation portion of