Social Protection
Social ProtectionThe world is becoming increasingly urbanised. Over one third of urban dwellers now reside in low-income urban settlements, where living conditions are often inadequate and there are multiple barriers to access to health services for women and girls. Based on six case studies and a thematic review examining women’s and girls’ access to health in low-income… Read more
Dr Haja Wurie is based at the College of Medicine and Allied Health Sciences in Freetown, Sierra Leone. In this HEART talks video she describes the rebuilding of health systems in the post-conflict period in Sierra Leone as ‘fire-fighting’. This meant that the response did not adequately capture gender. Ensuring service provision for women and… Read more
Valerie Percival is an Assistant Professor at the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs. She leads the ReBUILD project ‘Building Back Better: Taking forward empirical research on the opportunities and constraints for building gender responsive health systems in post conflict contexts’. This is the focus of Valerie’s HEART talks video. The first issue for humanitarian focus… Read more
The post-conflict or post-crisis period provides the opportunity for wide-ranging public sector reforms: donors fund rebuilding and reform efforts, social norms are in a state of flux, and the political climate may be conducive to change. This reform period presents favourable circumstances for the promotion of gender equity in multiple social arenas, including the health… Read more
This report outlines the main findings of ORIE operations research on promoting women’s use of antenatal care (ANC) services. The study supports refinement of the advocacy strategy for this, implemented by the Working to Improve Nutrition in Northern Nigeria (WINNN) programme. Summary of the key recommendations: Develop a targeted advocacy strategy for adolescent girls. Develop advocacy messages… Read more
The Punjab Economic Opportunities Programme (PEOP) is a flagship programme of the Government of Punjab being implemented in partnership with DfID. PEOP aims to alleviate poverty and create inclusive growth in the province’s high poverty districts – Bahawalnagar, Bahawalpur, Lodhran and Muzaffargarh – by increasing the employability and earnings of poor and vulnerable families. This… Read more
Evidence indicates that in several countries in Africa, women’s earnings are a fraction of male’s earnings. It is argued in this book that the gap is not simply the result of discrimination in the labour markets, but rather the result of multiple factors, including access to education and credit, cultural values and household duties and… Read more
Overview of key findings: The cost of secondary education, including fees, other direct costs and opportunity costs constitute the primary barrier to secondary education in most contexts. The costs are often higher for girls than boys. Strategies that address the cost barriers, such as fee elimination and cash transfers are generally effective at increasing girls’… Read more
This paper considers evidence for the effects of policies on gender gaps in education, distinguishing between policies that are ostensibly gender neutral and those that explicitly target girls. The demand for girls’ schooling is often more responsive than boys’ to gender neutral changes in school distance, price, and quality, patterns which can be explained in… Read more
For women and girls in particular, their socially prescribed role as carers can undermine their rights and limit their opportunities, capabilities and choices – posing a fundamental obstacle to gender equality and well-being. This report seeks to move towards a world in which individuals and society ‘recognise and value the importance of different forms of… Read more
This report is a collection of evidence and brief examples highlighting the effect and benefits of placing women at the core of planning, implementation and operations of water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) programmes. The experiences also show how women’s empowerment and the improvement of water supply, sanitation facilities and hygiene practice are inextricably linked. One cannot… Read more