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Effectiveness of Community Dialogue in Changing Gender and Sexual Norms for HIV Prevention: Evaluation of the Tchova Tchova Program in Mozambique (Journal of Health Communication, 21:5, 554-563, 2016)

Abstract: Structural HIV prevention interventions have gained prominence as ways to address underlying social and cultural factors that fuel the HIV epidemic. Identifying theories that explain how structural interventions are expected to change such factors can substantially increase their success. The Tchova Tchova community dialogue program, a theory-based intervention implemented in 2009–2010 in the provinces of Zambezia and Sofala, Mozambique, aimed to change gender and sexual norms for HIV prevention. Through facilitated sessions, the program sparked critical thinking and open dialogue among participants. This article measures the program’s effectiveness based on a sample of 462 participants and 453 nonparticipants. The results show that the program was successful in producing changes in three of the underlying structural factors of HIV: gender attitudes, gender roles, and HIV stigma. The program was also successful in changing other factors associated with HIV infection, including HIV prevention knowledge, discussion of HIV between sex partners, and having multiple sex partners.

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Adolescents with disabilities: enhancing resilience and delivering inclusive development (GAGE Consortium Report, 2018)

This new report takes stock of what is known about adolescents with disabilities living in the global South. Drawing on interviews with approximately 600 adolescent girls and boys with physical, visual, hearing or intellectual impairments, as well as interviews with their parents, teachers and other service providers, it also presents emerging findings from the Gender and Adolescence: Global Evidence (GAGE) research programme in Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Jordan and the State of Palestine. This report focuses, for the first time, on the intersection of age and disability – specifically the unique needs of adolescents with disabilities – and the gender dynamics that shape girls’ and boys’ lives. Alongside this, it also looks at the particular experiences of adolescents with disabilities who grow up in rural areas and conflict-affected contexts.

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Processing gender: lived experiences of reproducing and transforming gender norms over the life course of young people in Northern Uganda (Culture, Health & Sexuality Journal, 2018)

This article provides a framework to identify the resources, institutions, and processes that shape adolescents’ gendered choices and behaviors. This understanding can be used to inform decisions about when and where to intervene with program and policy levers.

The article results from a qualitative, longitudinal study conducted in tandem with the Gender Roles Equality and Transformation (GREAT) Project implemented by the Institute for Reproductive Health, Pathfinder International and Save the Children, together with local partners Straight Talk and Concerned Parent Association, with funding from USAID.

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ALIGN webinar: cross-country perspectives on gender norms

The Advancing Learning and Innovation on Gender Norms (ALIGN) project, led by ODI and supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, is a new initiative connecting those working on social and gender norms across a range of sectors and issues. Its aim is to further knowledge sharing and innovation to ensure evidence and learning on norm change informs more effective policy and practice.

This webinar introduces the ALIGN platform and discusses some of the key debates and concepts shaping cutting-edge development work on addressing harmful gender norms. Drawing from ODI’s research on gender norms alongside the experiences of projects in Uganda and India, the panel discusses: What are the key concepts and evidence for understanding gender norm change? How can programmes better respond to emerging evidence and context-specific dimensions of gender norms? What challenges, opportunities and learnings can be drawn from projects in Uganda and India to inform policy and practice?

Girls’ clubs and empowerment programmes – Knowledge to action: Effective action on gender norms that affect adolescent girls (ODI Research Note, 2015)

This Research and practice note outlines the role girls’ club and empowerment programmes can play in promoting adolescent girls’ wellbeing and changing the gender norms that constrain their lives. It draws on fieldwork in Ethiopia, Nepal, Uganda and Viet Nam, an ODI systematic review of communications programmes, and secondary literature.

Girls’ clubs, which may be drop-in sessions or regular meetings, organised by community groups or girls themselves, are an increasingly popular approach to promoting adolescent girls’ wellbeing. They help girls cope with the physical and emotional changes they experience during adolescence, and equip them with knowledge and skills to help them challenge discriminatory norms within their home and wider community. Typically, they aim to empower girls by giving them access to information about their rights (including their sexual and reproductive health). They also equip them with life skills, which build their self-confidence and help them to negotiate for their rights and voice their concerns. The approach aims to broaden girls’ horizons and encourage them to envisage and realise a better future.

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