Institutional Strengthening and Quality Enhancement Workshop

Economic Empowerment of Adolescent

Girls (EPAG) Project

Institutional Strengthening and

Quality Enhancement Workshop

Monrovia, Liberia

July 13-17, 2009

Workshop Summary

and Agendas

Venue: Liberian Ministry of Gender and Development

Workshop sponsored by

The Liberian Ministry of Gender and Development

and conducted by the Population Council

Acknowledgement of thanks

The framework for this basic report was prepared by Daniel Kirkwood,

Junior Professional Associate, Gender and Development Group, World Bank

W o r k s h o p R e p o r t “ A d o l e s c e n t G i r l s P r o g r a m m i n g & C a p a c i t y B u i l d i n g ”

Copyright 2009 © The Population Council, Inc.

The Population Council conducts research worldwide to improve policies, programs,

and products in three areas: HIV and AIDS; poverty, gender, and youth; and reproductive

health.

One Dag Hammarskjold Plaza

New York, NY 10017 USA

Telephone: 212-339-0500

Fax: 212-755-6052

www.popcouncil.org

Acknowledgments

The Institutional Strengthening Workshop, held July 13-15, 2009, and an accompanying

Quality Enhancement Workshop, held July 16-17, in Monrovia, Liberia, were sponsored

by the Liberian Ministry of Gender and Development and conducted by the Population

Council. Collaborating partners include: Liberian Ministry of Youth and Sports, World

Bank, Nike Foundation, Interagency Task Force on Adolescent Girls, and Liberia

Adolescent Girls Working Group (a coalition sponsored by the Ministries of Youth and

Sports, and Gender and Development). The workshop was also supported by funds from

the Partridge Trust and an anonymous donor.

Any part of this publication may be photocopied without permission from the publisher

provided that copies are distributed without charge and that full source citation is

provided. The Population Council would appreciate receiving a copy of any materials in

which the text is used.

www.popcouncil.org/pdfs/PGY09_AdolWkshopLiberia09.pdf

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACRONYMS ....................................................................................................................... i

BACKGROUND ................................................................................................................ 1

DAY ONE ........................................................................................................................... 2

DAY TWO ........................................................................................................................ 13

DAY THREE .................................................................................................................... 20

WORKSHOP AGENDA: JULY 13-15 ............................................................................ 23

REPORT ON JULY 16TH AND 17TH, 2009 QUALITY

ENHANCEMENT WORKSHOP ..................................................................................... 25

ANNEX A: HANDOUT ON MENTORING .................................................................. 42

ANNEX B: HANDOUT ON PAIRING STRATEGY .................................................... 44

ANNEX C: HANDOUT ON FINANCIAL EDUCATION LEARNING

SESSION TOPICS............................................................................................................ 46

WORKSHOP AGENDA: JULY 16-17 ............................................................................ 49

APPENDIX D: LIST OF PARTICIPANTS .................................................................... 51

APPENDIX E: SIX KEY PROGRAM DESIGN QUESTIONS ..................................... 58

APPENDIX F: WORKSHOP EVALUATION RESULTS ............................................ 59

i

ACRONYMS

AGWG Adolescent Girls Working Group

CE Coverage exercise

CEDAW Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women

CRC Convention on the Rights of the Child

EPAG Economic Empowerment of Adolescent Girls Project

HIV/AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome

NGOs Non-governmental organizations

RH Reproductive health

SGBV Sexual and gender-based violence

UNFPA United Nations Population Fund

1

BACKGROUND

The Institutional Strengthening Workshop was organized and facilitated by the Population

Council, in coordination with the Liberia Ministry of Gender and Development as part of its

Economic Empowerment of Adolescent Girls project (EPAG). The project is a collaboration

between the Government of Liberia, the World Bank, Denmark, and the Nike Foundation, and

seeks to smooth the path of adolescent girls to productive employment through skills training and

business development services. The pilot project will provide skills training to approximately

2,500 adolescent girls and young women in Montserrado and Margibi counties, with the goal of

increasing their employment and incomes. The project has four components: (1) skills training

for wage employment, combined with job placement assistance; (2) business development

services and links to microcredit for young women entrepreneurs; (3) institutional strengthening

of the government partner and implementing agencies and other stakeholders; and (4) monitoring

and impact evaluation. The workshop was part of the institutional strengthening component of

the project.

The objective of the workshop was to strengthen the capacity of EPAG project partners and

Liberian civil society organizations to design and implement adolescent girl programs.1 The

workshop was developed in collaboration with the Liberian Adolescent Girls Working Group

(AGWG), a coalition of approximately 20 Liberian NGO, government, and civil society entities

involved with programming or advocacy for adolescent girls. Many of the workshop participants

were AGWG members. The workshop approached this objective by stimulating an exchange of

ideas and experiences between Liberian, Ghanaian, and Sierra Leonean organizations and

international experts from Ghana, Eritrea, and the United States. In addition, leading up to the

workshop mentors worked with the participant organizations as they prepared proposals to be

further refined during the workshop.

This workshop followed on the first Adolescent Girls Programming and Capacity-building

Workshop organized by the Population Council, held in Nairobi, Kenya, in November 2008.

That initial workshop brought together 14 organizations from seven African countries, with the

goal of building programming skills, facilitating proposal development, and informing strategic

planning on how NGOs and governments can better structure programs to reach and benefit the

girls left behind.

Another aim of the capacity-building workshops is for participating NGOs to be empowered to

collaborate with and serve as resources to sister organizations in their countries and regions, in a

cascading leadership model. For example, one of the Ghanaian NGOs that participated in the

1 Also included in Appendix I is the detailed agenda of an interactive Quality Enhancement Workshop, which was

held immediately following the Institutional Strengthening Workshop. The presentations from the workshops are

available at: http://www.popcouncil.org/projects/PGY_AdolGirlsCapBuild.html.

2

2008 capacity-building workshop subsequently presented at this workshop, where several other

Ghanaian organizations participated. The Ghanaian NGOs that attended the Liberia workshop

are interested in continuing their learning on targeted evidence-based programs for adolescent

girls. They now plan to establish an adolescent girls working group with colleagues from

Northern Ghana and Accra to discuss specific elements of program design, programmatic

challenges, and best practices. The working group will identify specific skills that they are

interested in developing and will focus on one element during each working group meetings.

The groups will also visit one another‘s programs, where possible, to offer programmatic advice

and learn from one another.

DAY ONE

Introductions and Welcome

Rufus Kaine, Deputy Minister of the Liberia Ministry of Gender and Development, welcomed

the participants. The Deputy Minister said that this project, in addition to providing new skills to

young women and girls, would also help to strengthen government institutions in Liberia. The

Deputy Minister welcomed and thanked the various participating groups.

Andrew Morrison, Lead Economist at the World Bank‘s Gender and Development Unit,

welcomed everyone and thanked them for their participation. He highlighted that the EPAG is

part of the broader Adolescent Girls Initiative program, which will be implemented in South

Sudan, Rwanda, Nepal, and Afghanistan. This program is designed to implement and test

innovative ways to promote the economic empowerment of adolescent girls.

Yohannes Wolday, Portfolio Fellow at the Nike Foundation, said he was excited to be part of this

unique program, which is of special importance to the Nike Foundation. He expressed the hope

that everyone would use this opportunity to learn from one another.

Judith Bruce and Karen Austrian of the Population Council welcomed participants from Liberia,

Sierra Leone, and Ghana, and gave an overview orientation to the next days‘ work.

3

Presentation: Overview of Girls in Liberia: Finding and Planning For “Your Girls”

Judith Bruce, Population Council2

The main messages from the presentation were that vulnerable girls are diverse and, without

special efforts to target them, they are not included in programs or projects. To put it simply, if

you do not begin with the girls, they will not get the benefits.

Main points from the presentation:

Investing in adolescent girls is important for: building a strong economic base and

reversing intergenerational poverty; achieving universal primary education;

promoting gender equality; reducing maternal mortality and related infant

mortality; reversing the rising tide of HIV in young people; and reducing rapid

population growth.

The policy/legal context:

o Liberia has signed the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and

the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against

Women (CEDAW).

o Children and youth policy is part of the Liberia Poverty Reduction

Strategy.

o Government commitments include: National Youth Policy; National Plan

of Action Against Gender-Based Violence; Women and Children

Protection Unit of the Ministry of Gender and Development; and Ministry

of Youth and Sports.

Current adolescent girl policy in Liberia and many other countries does not reach

the most vulnerable girls.

The most vulnerable sub-groups of girls include:

o Girls ages 10-14 not living with either parent (or with one parent)

o Girls not in school or at risk of dropping out

o Married girls (ages 10-19)

o Girls in areas where child marriage is prevalent

2 Please note that the descriptions of presentations are intended to be very brief, capsule summaries. The complete

PowerPoint presentations are available at: http://www.popcouncil.org/projects/PGY_AdolGirlsCapBuild.html.

4

o Girls living in areas where a high proportion of first sex is forced or

tricked

o Girls living in areas with high HIV rates or other diseases

o Girls working in domestic service or other potentially exploitative work

o Girls who have experienced or been displaced by conflict

Main risks:

o Adolescent pregnancy

o Risky sexual behavior

o Alcohol abuse

o Physical violence (family, teachers, employers, etc.)

o Sexual violence (family, teachers, employers, etc.)

o Isolation due to family breakdown and/or weak social capital

Presentation: How Well Youth Services Are Reaching Those with the Greatest Needs:

Liberia Coverage Exercise Results

Adam Weiner, Population Council

The presentation explained that a coverage exercise (CE) is a low-cost monitoring tool employed

by service providers which results in a profile of program beneficiaries in order to determine

whether or not services are reaching targeted groups and if they are appropriate for the actual

beneficiaries. It went on to discuss the preliminary findings of the Liberian CE.

The preliminary analysis of the Liberian CE showed that a vast majority of investment is going

to reproductive health (RH) and HIV services, which many times treat problems after-the-fact

and are not necessarily building assets to avoid future problems. Among programs for females,

approximately ten times more investment is made in RH/HIV programs than is made in

Jobs/Livelihoods/Life Skills programming. This shows a serious gap in investments in asset-

building programs and raises a key question: Is the majority of the investments being made on

treatment as opposed to prevention? Preliminary estimates show that services are greatly

underserving the following populations: a) out-of-school populations ages 10-19, especially

those 10-14; b) young people ages 10-14 not living with their parents; and c) highly vulnerable,

socially isolated young adolescents.

5

Data from CEs are generally used for advocacy and programmatic decision-making when

determining which subgroups of young people are in need of targeted interventions based on the

size of the population, the acuteness of their need, and their representation among actual program

beneficiaries. In Burkina Faso, Ethiopia and Guatemala, CE data was used to re-direct

interventions toward the subgroups that were identified as being difficult to reach but whose

level of vulnerability was quite high (for example, married out-of-school girls).

Critical issues and questions the CE raises include:

What are the concerns over the imbalance in investments between health and

other programs?

What is the content and goal of the highly used services such as HIV/STIs, etc.?

Information? Testing? Prevention?

Should a greater level of effort be concentrated on building the protective assets

of the youngest girls at most risk of forced sex, STDs, including HIV, and

pregnancy?

Are we reaching adolescents early enough, given high rates of parenthood among

young adolescent girls and boys?

How can services be targeted to ensure that they reach young people who are not

living with parents and/or out of school?

Participant questions and comments:

What was the biggest challenge in undertaking the CE? Ensuring quality control

in data collection was a big challenge.

Presentation: Overview of Adolescent Girls‟ Situation in Ghana

Mavis Dontoh, Women‟s Initiative for Self Empowerment (WISE), Ghana

The presentation highlighted the significance of high proportions of young girls in Ghana who

are vulnerable because they are living with one or neither parent and/or are not in school. The

presentation also highlighted sub-national pockets of vulnerability. The presentation emphasized

the importance of the period when a girl begins to enter puberty as being the ―beginning of the

end‖ for investment in girls:

School drop-out rates increase among both rural and urban girls at around age 13.

6

The challenges faced by the high proportion of girls being married as children are not being

addressed by policy; policy has often given more attention to unmarried girls than to the rights of

schooling for married girls.

Livelihoods Approach to Programming for Adolescent Girls

Jennefer Sebstad, Consultant to the Population Council

The livelihoods approach provides the basis for a staged approach that responds to

the fact that girls change a lot during their adolescent years as they move through

the transition from childhood to adulthood. The needs of a 10 year old are quite

different from those of a 19 year old.

The idea is to provide a framework to help think through options for building

assets over time and decide what might make sense for girls in different contexts

and at different stages in their transition to adulthood.

Why focus on assets?

o Assets can be used both to reduce vulnerability, by helping girls manage

risk, and to take advantage of opportunities, by providing the means to

generate income. For example, savings can be drawn upon to deal with an

emergency if someone needs money; they can also be used to invest in an

income-generation activity.

o Assets examined in the presentation included human, social, financial, and

physical assets.

o A framework that focuses on asset building recognizes the interconnection

between the social and economic aspects of girls‘ lives, and the

importance of paying attention to the social context of economic

programs. Given the fundamental social transition that girls go through

during their adolescent years, this is critical for programming.

o An example of a program which highlights the links between social and

economic assets is a tailoring course that provides girls with their own

sewing machine at completion; such a course provides:

Social networks

Skills, ability to work

A productive asset

7

o A staged approach allows us to take account of the very different stages in

a young girl‘s life. We can start with life skills and mentoring at an early

age, and then move on to give girls an opportunity to put their skills into

practice as they get older (savings programs, etc.), and can move on to

business development programs as they mature.

Participant questions and comments

It was noted by a participant that Liberia has a National Youth Policy (for 15-35

year olds) and that a Children‘s Act (covering ages 10-14) is currently being

considered in Congress.

Activity: Asset-matching Worksheet

Jennefer Sebstad and Karen Austrian

A short activity was undertaken in order to develop participants‘ understanding of

various types of assets and the types of training or girls‘ program activities that

can help adolescent girls develop these assets.

Participants were provided with a sheet which displayed:

o A list of various assets, grouped under the main asset headings (social,

human, physical, and financial); and

o A list of seven examples of possible elements of an adolescent girls

program: girl group meetings, life skills and communication skills

training, rights awareness training, health service vouchers, savings

opportunities, mentoring, and a tailoring course which provides a sewing

machine upon completion of the course.

Participants had to list for each type of training or activity which assets that

training or program element helps girls to develop. For example, life-skills

training could be expected to develop girls‘ social assets, such as social networks

and relationships of trust.

After participants had finished writing their answers, there was an open-floor

session for participants to present their suggestions.

Presenters emphasized that:

o A single program activity can build many different types of assets.

8

o When designing a program, it is useful to start with the assets you want to

help girls to develop and to then work backward to decide what types of

activities would help achieve that outcome.

Activity: Girls‟ Life-cycle Timeline

Jennefer Sebstad and Karen Austrian

Participants were asked to match statements about certain assets and/or

knowledge to a girl‘s age (from 10 through 22 years old) in order to show what

they thought was the appropriate age for a girl to acquire that asset and/or

knowledge.

For example, one group decided the statement ―owns an asset that she could

sell/rent to start a new economic activity‖ was appropriate by age 22.

This activity was designed to show participants that: (1) different age groups

within adolescent girls have different needs and concerns; (2) we should question

our assumptions about what age is a suitable time for girls to acquire certain

assets or knowledge – this may be especially true if we want to prevent certain

negative outcomes later in a girl‘s life (e.g. to prevent early pregnancy girls may

need certain knowledge and skills at an earlier age).

During the activity, there was a trend for the groups initially to lead most assets

and knowledge to later ages, 18 and over. There more limited experience and

understanding of younger girls was evident. However, through discussion and

very lively debate, the importance of lowering the ages for girls to acquire such

assets, because they are ready for them and without them were more at risk for

adverse outcomes. Through this discussion, the group members gained a greater

appreciation of the importance of building assets, including savings, and

livelihood knowledge and skills at an earlier age as a basis for decent livelihoods.

As they started to question their assumptions about girls‘ needs, the group

members lowered the age they considered appropriate for various assets.

9

Presentation: Building Girls‟ Assets. A Case Study of the Binti Pamoja Center:

Integrating Financial Education and Savings in a Safe and Supportive Space for

Adolescent Girls

Karen Austrian, Population Council-Nairobi

The program started in 2002, building social and human assets, providing safe

spaces for girls to meet, mentors, and opportunities for girls to make friends.

Binti Pamoja did not want to simply lose the girls who were due to complete the

program, so Binti Pamoja provided leadership opportunities for alumni in the Safe

Spaces Program.

Binti Pamoja trained alumni to identify safe spaces in the community.

Alumni were provided with support to help them start their own girls‘ groups in

the community.

Alumni were provided with:

o Small stipends

o Program budgets

o Monthly supervision meetings

o Ongoing training

Binti Pamoja partnered with the Financial Education for the Poor Project to

provide financial literacy training. Financial literacy is an important human asset

which lays the groundwork for the accumulation of financial assets. Financial

literacy is also important because knowledge of health issues alone is not enough

to protect girls – financial literacy can help them gain more autonomy, so they are

able to act on this knowledge.

The work of Binti Pamoja led the Population Council to launch a program to help

groups of girls open savings accounts; it was noted that encouraging girls to

participate in conventionally configured microcredit schemes, including

associated loan-taking, may actually increase their vulnerability. Further, as girls

begin to earn without formal savings options, and a safe place to keep their

earnings, they may similarly increase their exposure to violence.

Legal barriers have been difficult, but the Council hopes to use the project to

build evidence and influence policy on age limits to open a bank account.

Mentors are used to register the accounts and the mentor must be present in order

to withdraw money.

10

Girls use a cash box to collect the money during the week, and then deposit it into

the account.

Participant questions and comments

How were commercial banks induced to open savings accounts for girls?

Deposits are so small that it is not profitable for the banks. However, it is an

opportunity for them to build a future client base and also to access girls‘ families,

with parents as potential customers.

How does the Council ensure mentors can do their job? They meet with the

mentors monthly in order to ask them about any challenges.

Is there a minimum amount required to open an account? No.

Presentation: Case Study of an Asset-Building Program For Adolescent Girls: Biruh Tesfa

(„Bright Future‟), a Program to Support Migrant Girls in Urban Slum Areas of Ethiopia

Judith Bruce, Population Council

The project is a partnership between the Ethiopia Ministry of Youth and Sport, the

Addis Ababa Bureau of Youth and Sports, the Bahir Dar Youth and Sport Office,

local administrations, and the Population Council.

The program is centered in five urban areas which receive a high proportion of

girls fleeing either anticipated or arranged child marriages. Those communities

are the Mercato area of Addis Ababa, and four cities in Amhara region, an area

with high rates of child marriage. In both places there are large, very vulnerable

populations of girls in the context of highly mobile populations of males.

Local women leaders are recruited from slum areas and trained as mentors.

Mentors mobilize out-of-school girls ages 10 to 19 by recruiting house-to-house,

selecting the most at-risk out-of-school girls for participation, with the goal of

maximizing the participation of girls in domestic service who, typically, are

completely left out of such programs.

Mentors negotiate directly with employers and other gatekeepers for registration

and ongoing participation of girls.

11

Participating girls are formed into groups which meet three times per week in

community halls donated by the kebeles/local administration; finding suitable

space, however, remains a challenge.

HIV education, non-formal education, life skills, psychosocial skills, gender-

based violence prevention, and financial literacy/entrepreneurship training are all

part of the project.

Provision of locally made, reusable sanitary pads to the girls is an important part

of the project.

Linkage to shelter is provided in the case of girls who are victims of rape; so too

are referrals to counseling, legal, and clinical services.

Biruh Tesfa demonstrates that it is possible to reach the most vulnerable and hard-

to-reach adolescents with HIV support programs and services .

For further information about Biruh Tesfa see:

Erulkar AS, Mekbib T, Tegegne M. 2008. ―Biruh Tesfa: Creating a Bright Future for

Migrant Girls in Urban Areas of Ethiopia,‖ Population Council: Transitions to Adulthood

briefs, No. 21. PDF: http://www.popcouncil.org/pdfs/TABriefs/PGY_Brief

21_BrightFuture.pdf

Erulkar A.S., and Mekbib T. 2007. ―Invisible and vulnerable: Adolescent domestic

workers in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.‖ Vulnerable Child and Youth Studies, 2(3): 246-256.

Abstract: http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~db=all~content=a788163568

Population Council. 2009. ―Biruh Tesfa,‖ profile in Integrating Multiple Gender

Strategies to Improve HIV and AIDS Interventions: A Compendium of Programs in

Africa, page 29-33. International Center for Research on Women.

PDF: http://www.aidstar-one.com/sites/default/files/Gender_compendium_Final.pdf

Participant questions and comments

Judith Bruce noted that there were a lot of services supposedly available for

young girls in the community, but in fact the girls had never used them. As a

response, Biruh Tesfa staff introduced girls to these services in order to break

down social barriers and make them feel more comfortable with the idea of using

them.

12

Presentation: WISE Up Girls for Better Lives Project

Helious Dablu, Women‟s Initiative for Self Empowerment (WISE), Ghana

WISE had attended a previous adolescent girls‘ programming and capacity-

building workshop; since then, they have received seed funding to begin their

program.

The program works with adolescent out-of-school girls ages 10-20 who work as

“kayayei” (market girls).

These girls are more vulnerable due to:

o Increased experiences of sexual violence

o High risks of teenage pregnancy

o Exposure to HIV/AIDS

o Lack of family or social support

o Single motherhood

o Sex work

WISE Up Girls for Better Lives tries to get the younger girls back to school and

provide business skills training for the older girls (by negotiating with skills

training centers to enroll girls in programs).

The program facilitates girls‘ access to services such as psychological counselling

and medical services.

The program provides a forum for sharing experiences (e.g., regarding SGBV)

After advice from the Population Council, WISE Up Girls for Better Lives

decided to narrow the number of communities they planned to work in, and to

reduce the number of girls targeted, focusing just on out-of-school girls.

Participant questions and comments:

It was noted that a savings instrument can be important because without it saving

money and storing it can be unsafe.

Is WISE Up Girls for Better Lives building any partnerships? The Ministry of

Women and Children‘s Affairs has made some commitments, and WISE is also in

contact with organizations working on similar projects.

13

If you improve the situation of a girl (e.g. she increases her income), she may be

more likely to be a target of crime/violence and this may make her more

vulnerable. One participant said that their project has provided follow-up help to

account for this.

One participant suggested that girls who had previously migrated from a rural

area to the city should be given help to move back to the rural area.

Should mentors come from within or outside the community? Projects should not

use outside people as mentors, but rather older girls from within the community

who will have had similar experiences to the participating girls. Outside people

tend to leave after a short period of time.

Note: As a result of this workshop, the Ghana groups are hoping to establish an adolescent girls

working group.

For more information on the process in Ghana contact Sarah Engebretsen at

[email protected].

DAY TWO

Presentation: Three Core Elements of Girls Programming

Karen Austrian, Population Council

A girls program can be thought of as a bowl, with the ingredients you put in that

bowl being a secondary consideration – i.e. do not think of the program as an HIV

program or as a skills program, but as a girls program.

The three core elements of a girls program are:

o A safe place to meet (there are very few girl-only spaces in most

communities)

o Friends (girls are more socially isolated than boys; strong social networks

improve health outcomes)

o A mentor (a role model)

14

When selecting a mentor, care must be taken that the mentor does not have a

conflict of interest – for example, a person should not be selected as a mentor if

they are also responsible for collecting a loan from the girl.

Participant questions and comments

Should mentors always be an older person? It depends on the community – we

should look at the individual community to see who girls usually go to for advice

and who they would feel comfortable talking to.

What should a program staff member do if a girl wants a mentor who the staff

member does not consider to be suitable? There needs to be a balance between

what the girl wants and what the program considers to be in her best interests.

The program may consider providing training to the girls to help them think about

relevant questions they should consider when trying to identify a suitable mentor.

Can a girl‘s parents participate in conflict resolution between the girl and the

mentor? This should be considered on a case-by-case basis, but raises the

important point that mentors need support and supervision to ensure that they are

able to do a good job.

Is it always better for a mentor to not be a member of the girl‘s family? Yes;

often the key issues in the girl‘s life revolve around conflict within their families.

If the mentor was a member of the girl‘s family, they would not be able to offer

impartial advice on family affairs.

While it might be tempting to select a mentor who is an elite person from outside

the community (i.e. university students), they are often expensive to hire, they

may not understand key community issues, and they are unlikely to remain in the

community. Therefore, having young women and/or older adolescent girls from

the community itself be developed into mentors is important – not only so that the

girls have mentors/role models there in their community, but also to develop a

community-based cadre of young female leadership.

Presentation: The Binti Pamoja Center: Developing Girls into Leaders - A Case Study of

the Cascading Leadership Model

Karen Austrian, Population Council

While the Binti Pamoja Center was already discussed in Day One, this

presentation focused specifically on the use of the cascading leadership model in

the program.

15

With the cascading leadership model, once girls have completed the initial

program they can ―graduate‖ and become alumni leaders.

Advantages of the cascading leadership model:

o Allows the program to increase its geographic reach, while reducing costs

per girl.

o Provides leadership opportunities for adolescent girls.

o Alumni girls serve as good role models for younger girls in the

community.

The typical sequence of a girl‘s participation is:

o A girl joins the program and takes two years of extensive training in

reproductive health, HIV issues, financial literacy, peer education, and life

skills.

o Prior to graduation, the girl participates in a training of trainers program.

o The girl spends a 3-6 month probation period in an existing safe spaces

group.

o If the probation period is successful, the girl becomes an alumni leader

and forms her own girls‘ group.

o The girl can subsequently become a Village Coordinator, who is

responsible for coordinating all the groups in a given village, or a Field

Officer, who supervises alumni leaders, runs monthly alumni meetings,

coordinates events, and identifies spaces for the weekly meetings.

It is important to recognize that alumni still require ongoing support and

supervision.

Participant questions and comments

Is a cascading leadership model sustainable as the program grows bigger and

bigger?

o Population Council noted that that the cascading leadership model is itself

a way to expand the program while both providing employment to

graduates and limiting the increase in administrative costs associated with

the program expansion. There is no doubt, however, that total

administrative costs tend to rise as the program expands. Binti Pamoja is

16

trying to cut costs by exploring the possibility of the community donating

the space for the program.

o One participant asked Karen if it would make sense for Binti Pamoja to

charge girls a fee for participating. Karen did not support the idea,

responding that: 1) a fee high enough to make a significant contribution to

program costs would stop the girls from attending; and 2) a fee that is

affordable for participating girls would be too small to significantly defray

program costs.

The cascading leadership model is time consuming and you must wait for the

initial group of participating girls to develop and be ready to become leaders.

One way around this is to train older girls at the beginning, so you do not have to

wait for the younger cohort to graduate.

A central motivation behind the cascading leadership model is the idea that the

worst mistake a girls program can make is to simply let girls go when they finish

the program. It is important to capitalize on the investment that has already been

made in them.

Presentation: A Cascading Leadership Program for Mayan Adolescent Girls in

Guatemala: The Abriendo Oportunidades Program

Adam Weiner, Population Council

This presentation examined the use of the cascading leadership model in the

“Abriendo Oportunidades” program in Guatemala.

The “Abriendo Oportunidades” program targets Mayan adolescent girls in the

rural areas that include Guatemala‘s poorest communities.

The program builds community-based social infrastructure (rural community

girls‘ clubs) to identify and reach the most vulnerable girls and develop their

social assets.

Program participants can become ―girl leaders‖ and then graduate to become

mentors.

The program is divided into two age cohorts: 8-12 and 13-18. This is important

as the two cohorts have different needs and it is important to provide support

through key life-cycle events, which take place at different ages:

o Puberty

o School dropout

17

o Age at marriage

o Age at first pregnancy

o Birth intervals

o Safe, productive livelihoods

It is especially important to target the younger age group (8-12 year olds) as this

may help these girls to avoid negative outcomes later in their lives.

Participant questions and comments

It seems that some mentoring should be one-on-one (e.g. for personal issues)

while some should be group based so that girls can share with each other – are

both types used in the Guatemala program? There is a mix of both one-on-one

and group mentoring, though it is mostly group based. However the communities

where the program operates are very small, so it is easy for girls to go and visit

mentors (and vice versa) one-on-one, on an informal basis, since most of the girl

leaders live in the communities where they work.

Resources to learn more about the Abriendo Oportunidades program: contact Jennifer Catino at

[email protected] or Marta Julia Ruiz at [email protected].

Hallman, Kelly, Eva Roca, Marta Julia Ruiz, Jennifer Catino, Alejandra Colom, and

Sandra Contreras Aprile. 2007. "For Mayan girls, safe spaces lead to social gains,"

Promoting Healthy, Safe, and Productive Transitions to Adulthood Brief No. 5. New

York: Population Council.

PDF: http://www.popcouncil.org/pdfs/TABriefs/PGY_Brief05_MayanGirls.pdf

PDF en español: http://www.popcouncil.org/pdfs/TABriefs/PGY_Brief05_MayanGirls_ESP.pdf

Hallman, Kelly, Sara Peracca, Jennifer Catino, and Marta Julia Ruiz. 2007. Assessing

the multiple disadvantages of Mayan girls: The effects of gender, ethnicity, poverty, and

residence on education in Guatemala. Promoting Healthy, Safe, and Productive

Transitions to Adulthood Brief No. 16. New York: Population Council.

PDF: http://www.popcouncil.org/pdfs/TABriefs/PGY_Brief16_Guatemala.pdf

PDF en español: http://www.popcouncil.org/pdfs/TABriefs/PGY_Brief16_Guatemala_ESP.pdf

Hallman, Kelly, Sara Peracca, Jennifer Catino, and Marta Julia Ruiz. "Multiple

disadvantages of Mayan females: The effects of gender, ethnicity, poverty, and residence

on education in Guatemala," Policy Research Division Working Paper no. 211. New

York: Population Council. PDF: http://www.popcouncil.org/pdfs/wp/211.pdf

18

Population Council. 2006. ―Illuminating the Status of Mayan Girls in Guatemala,‖

Population Briefs, Vol. 12, No. 3, September.

http://www.popcouncil.org/publications/popbriefs/pb12(3)_3.html

Colom, Alejandra, Marta Julia Ruiz, Jennifer Catino, Kelly Hallman, Sara Peracca, and

Kristen M. Shellenberg. 2005. ―Voices of vulnerable and underserved adolescents in

Guatemala: A summary of the qualitative study ‗Understanding the lives of indigenous

young people in Guatemala‘.‖ Guatemala City: Population Council.

PDF: http://www.popcouncil.org/gfd/presentations/guatemala/PCqualibrief.pdf

Activity: Recruitment Strategy Assessment

The objective of this activity was to encourage the participants to think about the

advantages and disadvantages of the different possible ways of reaching

adolescent girls to make them aware of programs.

Various methods for marketing the program were briefly suggested by workshop

participants. For each possible method two posters were put up on the wall: one

poster was divided into an ―advantages‖ and ―disadvantages‖ column; the other

poster was divided into a ―who we reach‖ and a ―who we do not reach‖ column.

The participants then divided themselves into smaller groups and spent a few

minutes writing their ideas on each poster.

Six methods were explored in the poster exercise:

o Word of mouth

o Community leaders

o Girl-to-girl

o Fliers

o Radio

o Parents

One of the main points emphasized in the discussion following the exercise, was

that there are different types of adolescent girls – you need to think carefully

about who you want to reach and ensure that they will not be left out due to your

chosen method for reaching them. For example:

o Fliers will only be useful in attracting literate girls.

19

o Radio will only reach those who have access to a radio.

o Many marketing methods may not be effective in engaging key

gatekeepers, such as parents and boyfriends, who may wield considerable

influence over a girl‘s decision to participate in the program.

Activity: Engaging the Family: Group Skits

This activity was designed to get the participants to demonstrate methods for

engaging parents or guardians and for dealing with any reservations parents or

guardians may have towards girls‘ participation in a program.

It is important to consider methods for engaging parents and guardians, as they

are key gatekeepers who may influence girls‘ participation in programs. If good

relationships and good communications with parents or guardians are not

developed and maintained, this may lead to resistance to girls‘ participation.

Participants were divided into groups. Each group had to perform a short skit,

illustrating a method for engaging a girl‘s family.

Skits illustrated the following scenes:

o Bringing a girl‘s parents into a program meeting: It is important to

consider what the parents already know or do not know about the program

before inviting them – for example, parents may not be aware that

reproductive health issues are part of the program curriculum. A benefit

of this method is that it may win the parents‘ trust by allowing them to see

the program for themselves.

o The home visit: When visiting a girl‘s family at their home, you may be

directly confronted with internal family issues, such as a drunk father.

This can make for a very sensitive situation, yet it also gives an extremely

detailed insight into the life of the girl, which could help better understand

the issues in her life.

o An open door policy for parents to visit staff: Parents are able to see the

actual location of the program, which may alleviate security concerns.

However, it can be distracting and time consuming for staff. Critically, as

parents may turn up unannounced, staff may have to deal with issues on

the spot, without having any time for planning an appropriate response.

20

At the end of the exercise it was noted that key gatekeepers, such as parents,

should not just be viewed as obstacles, but also as valuable resources with which

you can more fully engage a girl and understand her life.

Programs may wish to engage key people in the girls‘ lives beyond their

immediate family (guardians, boyfriends, employers).

DAY THREE

Presentation: Charting Your Success

Adam Weiner, Population Council

The presentation explained the difference between monitoring (who are we

reaching and what are we doing?), a continuous process that takes place during

the program to track progress on specific indicators, and evaluation (are we

making a difference?), a process used to determine the program‘s impact on the

lives of the participants with respect to the desired outcomes. The presentation

then went on to focus on monitoring since impact evaluations are highly complex

and costly activities usually conducted by outside experts. Program evaluation

was dealt with in detail on Day Four, by Shubha Chakravarty of the World Bank,

with the service providers for the EPAG project.

Adolescence is a rough journey towards adulthood and programs should ensure

that girls make a healthy transition. Monitoring is important as it allows us to

measure key indicators during this transition in order to ensure that girls are on

track. Programs should start monitoring at the level of the girl, so that they can

identify and measure the individual assets that will help girls achieve certain goals

and keep their lives on track.

The presentation outlined five ―domains‖ of information on girls:

o Basic information

o Critical life events

o Human assets

o Social assets

o Financial assets

21

It was emphasized that program staff need only look at the domains which are

relevant to the particular program they are working on.

The presentation summarized the different research methods which may be used

to collect information on girls:

o Questionnaires:

Some questions may be sensitive (e.g. for cultural reasons).

The difference between closed- and open-ended questions was

explained, as well as their various advantages and disadvantages

(e.g. open-ended questions can produce more detailed information,

but may be difficult to record if answers are too long).

The difference between quantitative (good for the overall picture)

and qualitative (helps to answer ―why?‖) information was

explained.

o Participatory research:

Useful if you are want to look at a certain issue in more depth.

Useful if you want to learn more about the issues in a particular

community.

Activity: Stairwell Talks

The objective of this exercise was to encourage participants to consider strategies

for engaging the interest of potential donors.

Participants performed short ―stairwell talks,‖ role plays in which individual

participants held short (maximum 3 minutes) conversations with a workshop

facilitator, in which the participant had to explain:

o What organization they were from.

o What problems adolescent girls face.

o What their organization is doing about the problems.

Feedback from faculty and participants emphasized the need to:

o Display innovation - donors like to be associated with a new approach.

o Be clear about which problems you are trying to address and how.

22

o Be realistic about your goals.

o Be clear on the qualities (skills, experience, etc.) that you and your

organization are able to drawn upon in addressing the issues faced by

adolescent girls.

o Be in tune with the interests of your audience and ensure that you are

pitching yourself to a relevant person.

Following the exercise, there was a general discussion of methods for fundraising.

Workshop facilitators suggested the following strategies for fundraising:

o Meet with donors to find out exactly what their priorities are. Their

priorities are often not well publicized.

o Bilateral donors tend to support very large organizations, but smaller

NGOs can associate with one of these larger organizations.

o Small grants are available through the World Bank‘s Development

Marketplace.

o Read the newspapers to find out about requests for Expressions of Interest.

It was suggested that it would be a good idea for the Adolescent Girls Working

Group to compile information on access to donor institutions.

23

WORKSHOP AGENDA: JULY 13-15

ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT OF ADOLESCENT GIRLS (EPAG) PROJECT

INSTITUTIONAL STRENGTHENING WORKSHOP

July 13-15, 2009

Monrovia, Liberia

DAY ONE

When What

9:00 – 10:00 Welcome & Introductions

Rufus Kaine, Deputy Minister, Liberia Ministry of Gender and Development

Andrew Morrison, World Bank, Gender and Development Unit

Yohannes Wolday, Fellow, Nike Foundation

Judith Bruce and Karen Austrian, Population Council

10:00 – 11:00

Overview of Girls on Liberia

Who are the girls you want to reach?

Which girls are reached now?

Judith Bruce and Adam Weiner

Introduction to Girls in Ghana

Women’s Initiative for Self-Empowerment (WISE)

11:00 – 11:30 Tea & Coffee Break

11:30 – 1:00 Building Girls‟ Assets

Jennefer Sebstad

1:00 – 2:00 Lunch

2:00 – 3:00

Case Studies of Asset-Building Programs for Adolescent Girls

Presentation of Binti Pamoja and Biruh Tesfa programs as an example of asset-building

approach (social, human, financial assets)

Karen Austrian (Binti Pamoja)

Judith Bruce (Biruh Tesfa)

Presentation of WISE program: Building social and human assets

Helious Dablu and Mavis Dontoh

3:00 – 4:00 Preparing Communities to Work with Girls

Judith Bruce

4:00 – 4:30 Tea & Coffee Break

4:30 – 5:45 Workshop Facilitator Introductions to Areas of Expertise

Meetings with Workshop Facilitators

24

DAY TWO

When What

9:00 – 9:30

Check-In with Workshop Facilitators on How Day One Activities Affected

Thoughts on Program

Judith Bruce and Karen Austrian

9:30 – 10:00

Three Core Elements Of Girls‟ Programming: Safe Place, Friends, and a Mentor

Karen Austrian

10:00 – 11:00 Leadership Development

Karen Austrian and Adam Weiner

11:00 – 11:30 Tea & Coffee Break

11:30 – 12:30 Recruitment

Karen Austrian

12:30 – 1:30 Lunch

1:30 – 2:30 Working With Families

Karen Austrian

2:30 – 3:30 Making Program Content Decisions

Karen Austrian

3:30 – 4:15 Present Program Content Decisions for Feedback

Workshop Facilitators

4:15 – 4:30 Tea & Coffee Break

4:30 – 5:00 How Long Does it Take a Program to Root?

Karen Austrian and Judith Bruce

5:00 – 6:00 Meetings with Workshop Facilitators

DAY THREE

When What

9:00 – 9:30 Check-In with Workshop Facilitators on How Day Two Activities Affected

Thoughts on Program

Judith Bruce and Karen Austrian

9:30 – 12:30 Charting Success: Measuring Changes in Girl Participants‟ Lives

Adam Weiner

11:15 – 11:30 Tea & Coffee Break

12:30 – 1:30 Lunch

1:30 – 2:30 Stairwell Talks

2:30 – 2:45 Tea & Coffee Break

2:45 – 3:45 Evaluation and Next Steps

25

Report on July 16th and 17th, 2009 Quality Enhancement Workshop

Economic Empowerment Adolescent Girls (EPAG) Project

Introductory Comments

The original plans for Days 4 and 5 were framed against the understanding that providers would

have signed agreements and that there would be some individual work with contractors on the

content and implementation. Instead, because some, but not all of the contractors had signed

their agreement, the Population Council and Bank teams worked together to develop a two-day

agenda that would cover key areas where there was a need for building consensus: assumptions

about the girls; experience to date in Liberia with these populations; criterion of success for the

program; and the best possible programmatic design to meet the goals of the program. This was

seen as a critical step for implementing a pilot (albeit a large scale) that could be studied

effectively with respect to different elements, including the pairing concept.

The Ministry of Gender/EPAG team, the World Bank team, the Population Council, and the

diverse group of lively contractors spent the two days building consensus on the design and

standardization of the program components.

Below is a discussion of some of the highlights of what was learned in these discussions, which,

have contributed to a firm framing of the contractual arrangements. These elements were

explored before the memorandums of understandings with the contractors were finalized. Some

elements of the program design (commented on throughout and recapitulated at the end) were

not part of the terms of reference but are possible areas for deepening the impact of EPAG as it is

implemented in the nine communities.

1. Presentations by Service Providers

Each of the service providers presented information on the characteristics of their target

communities. They discussed the physical and social resources of each community (tackled

again on Day 5), who the residents of the communities are, their approximate numbers, and any

special challenges/advantages of the area (for example, some were near the United Nations

barrack of the army on a beach). Flip charts were used to capture each of the providers‘

perspectives in their communities, including outstanding questions on these communities.

These flip charts were returned to and very useful in grounding the discussions in the session on

Day 5, entitled ―Community Engagement and Commitment.‖

In the initial presentations, providers also covered proposed job and business areas and the

related curricula. The discussion centered on the applicability of the jobs and business training

paradigms to adolescent girls and young women. How can the EPAG program give girls new

economic opportunities and build new skills without subjecting them to undue risk? An

important observation consistently made was that the girls who are already are working, and who

26

would be defined as economically active, often are in unsafe professions. Thus there are two

related challenges that is not as apparent with other populations -- a group that is not

economically active, but needs to be brought in, and a group that is economically active who are

at regular risk (such as the girls on the beach selling fish).

There was much discussion about the need to adapt models of social support and teaming, in the

training and, in some cases, on the job. For example in positions as security guards, teaming

girls might be essential for both safety and sustainability. Providers also discussed how they had

done recruitment in the past, and how it would be conducted for girls (followed up later in the

day).

The proposed curriculum was not discussed in any great detail except for the assertion and

interest of all the contractors in developing appropriate life skills among their clientele given

their age and gender and also the likelihood that many will have children (about 70% of Liberian

females have given birth by age 20). Providers showed enormous empathy with the prospective

participants and it was clear in the discussion that there would be a need to go into much more

detail about the life skills package, reproductive health dimensions, and negotiation for sexual

safety-including, and maybe especially, in the context of commercial transactions. There also

was discussion of efforts to standardize the life skills portion of the curriculum across providers.

2. Introduction to Impact Evaluation

Shuba Chakravarty presented an overview of impact evaluation (PowerPoint attached). She

emphasized that the programmatic decisions would be taken and then followed by a set of

sampling decisions and research strategies. The program design will lead the evaluation research

design, but must incorporate an implementation strategy that would ensure a rigorous evaluation.

Earlier sessions held in the week made the distinction between monitoring and evaluation, and

Dr. Chakravarty re-emphasized this. This session was used to prepare the way for a discussion of

the recruitment and selection process for training participants. Participants discussed the need

for – and some of the challenges of -- a process that is standard across all sites to provide a basis

for impact evaluation while at the same time is perceived as fair by the community and the girls.

The key outcome of Dr. Chakravarty‘s presentation was to give each girl as fair a chance as

possible.

Dr. Chakravarty stressed that in evaluating the EPAG project, the design must identify a similar

group of girls who are randomly assigned to round 1 or round 2 training. This provides a

control group to study for round 1. It is important to ensure the two groups are as similar as

possible and assign them randomly. The strategy is a ‗pipeline‘ approach that gives each eligible

girl the same chance of receiving treatment (i.e., training) in round 1 or round 2; and to compare

those offered treatment first with those offered treatment later (controls). The method of

assigning girls to the first or second round must be fair and transparent.

In further discussing why the recruitment method matters for impact evaluation, Dr. Chakravarty

referred to the need for comparing girls with similar characteristics who have and have not

received training. The recruitment process must generate a large enough pool to create two

27

groups of girls with similar characteristics, and ensure the pool fully represents the target

population. A particular challenge for the contractors is that the recruitment approach needs to

be consistent across the nine communities from which the training participants will be recruited.

3. Recruitment and Selection for an Effective Impact Evaluation

The service providers all made 10 minute presentations about their proposed recruitment

strategies. There was a wide discussion of common recruitment strategies. The key underlying

concern in this discussion was how best to make the opportunity to participate widely known in

the community among all the segments of adolescent girls and young women. The decision was

taken to keep participation open to all comers (who define themselves as adolescent girls and

young women without checking their ages) while stratifying participation in the selection process

so that among those being given business skills, at least half of the recruits would be 18 and

under, increasing the possibility that they would also be without children.

This participant selection strategy addresses a tendency in income generating, credit and other

economic opportunity programs to focus on young women in their early twenties with one or

more children. Younger girls, with minimal or some schooling but out of school in their late

adolescent years, participate at much lower levels. Further, to the extent that younger girls do

participate, their dropout levels often are higher. Girls at this stage often are uncertain that their

economic future rests in their own hands and are at the same time vulnerable to unwise sexual

relationships (sometimes coerced) as a means to get economic support from a male. Frequently

these relationships result in bearing children, and once the young woman has born the child and

often finds herself ―on her own‖ with the child and she becomes ―economically focused.‖ In

designing recruitment and selection process for the programs, it is therefore important to assess

different segments of girls‘ experience and engage the interest of a spectrum of girls through a

variety of community channels to create as much access as possible. (see graphic below). This

could involve defining a single day when all interested girls would present themselves, and

developing a transparent, community-validated process of selecting the girls into the program

and into rounds one and two.

Given the difference in the experience of the providers and the difference in the size and social

composition of their catchment areas‘ (to be discussed later), this discussion resulted in an

agreement to design a common recruitment strategy and a common set of understandings in all

of the communities among all the providers. It also resulted in an agreement to engage a single

non-provider organization to undertake the recruitment so that it will be as uniform as possible.

28

12

Significant Segments of Girls Her Special

Challenges

Key Personalities,

Gatekeepers that

need to be contacted

The in-school girl at or near

grade for age

The deeply disadvantaged girl,

abused, living apart from

parents, not in school

The married girl

The girl with a child

The girl who isn’t working and

isn’t in school, “doing nothing”

(ages 17-20, for example)

The girl in domestic service

The wage-working girl

Contextualizing the girl in her family/community – identifying

specific challenges for each segment

29

4. Mentoring

See Annex A for workshop handout

The service providers presented their strategies on mentoring, which showed a marked difference

among providers in the level of contact planned between mentors and mentees (a ratio ranging

from 1 to 5, to 1 to 20, to a very casual notion of mentoring). They all professed a strong

commitment to providing an empathetic environment that ―looked out for the girls.‖ It became

clear that mentoring somehow would have to be standardized so that there is a consistent level of

input to girls both as to time, content, the ratios of mentors to mentees, and compensation

arrangements for the mentors. Further it was important that the mentors be accessible to the girls

and build close relationships of trust, but have clear guidelines regarding confidentiality. The

content of the roles of was widely discussed, ranging from being role models, helping them learn

a new skill (explicitly rather than implicitly), connecting them to business and social resources,

and checking in on their progress and their level of attachment and engagement with the

program. Another important role will be imparting negotiation skills particularly with regard to

their personal protection in the context of work that may expose them to safety and reputational

risks.

Some providers explicitly mentioned their role in offering information about reproductive health

and other sensitive matters.

It was stressed that what mentors learn from girls will often help frame a scope of work for

future mentoring programs. Supportive supervision in many service oriented programs for

females finds it a useful question to ask the program deliverers engaged in direct contact with

vulnerable groups, ―What that you were asked to do could you respond to?‖ and ―What that you

were asked to do could you not respond to?‖ The latter often brings up some of the most extreme

issues (like incest and other forms of abuse). Capturing these issues allows future programming

to anticipate areas in which mentors may need assistance and may suggest ways in which official

scopes of work should be expanded.

Thirty years ago such an approach was used in Bangladesh for the the first wave of female

family planning workers. This feedback from the field activities made that program

extraordinarily empowering to the women at the receiving end. Rather than narrowly limiting

mentors to a certain number of tasks, supervisors constantly asked them what additionally they

were asked to do that they couldn‘t respond to. Consequently, the actual demands made on them

were documented and programmers could shift emphases in training, implementation plans,

validation and reward systems to encourage effective social support.

It was recommended at the end of the session that mentoring be standardized, as to the general

qualities of mentors:

by age: not necessarily the same age but within striking distance

reputational and skill qualities

not being a family member, as that may limit disclosure

not being the teacher, as that puts stress on a dual role

30

and emphasize the importance that they have basic skills such as literacy and be

empathetic, accessible, seen as an appropriate figure by the community (―a decent

person‖), and the necessity of them being female.

Based on the discussion, the recommendation was made that the ratio of mentors to mentees

should be 1 to 7. It was further discussed that it was important to establish uniformity as to

compensation (for time, for travel or otherwise), and making explicit what costs/returns were to

mentors‘ participation.

At the end of the session a recommendation was that mentoring should be honored and

professionalized to the extent that there were very explicit scopes of work and ongoing

resourcing and social support to the mentors themselves. Further, given the high risk of the girls

in Liberia for coerced and unprotected sexual relations as well as closely related health issues,

there was a clear necessity to develop some kind of core health curriculum, including but not

limited to reproductive health.

The domains in which the mentors are trained should be specified and the mentors should be

trained to impart accurate information in a sensitive fashion in each area. There also was a

recommendation for mentors to keep track of what they could and could not handle, in order to

improve future mentoring activities (this builds on the experience both from Bangladesh and

from the community health worker and female leader system in Egypt). As soon as there is a

female focal point, and she is trusted, many girls and young women will come forward with

concerns for discussion. The mentor should be encouraged to define those that they can respond

to and those that they can‘t. Some of the concerns that they are asked to respond to may simply

require more training. For example, specific health information that they don‘t have or

knowledge of services with which to refers the girls. Other reports (incest, levels of violence,

corruption) may provide insight from the female community as to what needs to be done before

we support them. It is a tremendous opportunity to be in such a network of females to pick up

information (think of it as a radio station) and provide non-punitive forms for mentors to speak

about what they could not do with confidence. This provides an opportunity for the real needs of

the female community to be brought to bear.

The work of EPAG and indeed, the Ministry and Gender and Ministry of Youth around girls and

women needs to be informed by the real problems that girls present. At no point should mentors

feel shy to share that information and indeed it is literally a goldmine for sensitive female

programming (a supervisor I knew at every session asked every single one of her workers to

define a situation in which she thought she handled well and one she simply couldn‘t handle

because she thought she didn‘t have the skills or the resources. Everyone had to answer).

The issues of confidentiality came up. Insofar as mentoring is successful, confidential

information will be passed on and the scope of responsibility for the mentor in supporting the

mentee on the one hand, but protecting her privacy on the other, needed to find balance in some

kind of confidentiality policy.

Discussion of mentoring led to a strong and important addition to the program: the need for the

mentors to have formalized support, plausibly available through the Ministry of Gender and

31

Development. Creating a network of mentors can be capitalized on in each of these communities

to provide another cadre of females to provide, guide and support business relationships. They

also could participate in potential community-based social and economic empowerment centers.

This latter idea of community-based centers is not in the scope of the project, but again is a

recommendation. The mentors, as with the participants, are a resource. If their presence in the

community is mapped (literally mapped) the EPAG is achieving a very high density of trained

women. The question will be how to harvest this going forward. What community level

networking will help the mentors and the participants? What physical venues (such as the

proposed social and economic empowerment centers in each of the nine communities) could

optimize the benefits of this important resource in the long run?

5. Pairing Strategies

See Annex B for workshop handout

While all providers anticipate that girls will ‗naturally‘ find friends, pairing girls was

differentiated as an explicit social support strategy and, in some cases, a didactic strategy.

Pairing is central to at least one of the important research questions being asked, so

differentiating between spontaneous and planned pairing is essential. To avoid having some girls

left out while others naturally are drawn to one another, in some cases a ‗pair‘ might actually

consist of three.

The initial proposal in February 2008 from the Population Council consultants suggested having

groups of five from recruitment to placement if possible. This was unmanageable given that

incentives were given only to trainers and were not extended to business placements in terms of

length of retention of the girls. In any case, the thought is that over the longer term, aggregating

females throughout the process will give additional social support and might improve the

retention rates through the process of training and placing, particularly in the case of non-

traditional jobs. For example: could another project (not possible for EPAG) incentivize

businesses so that they received a benefit if they retained a cadre of girls over a longer term?

The argument is that because the businesses are benefiting from the training and social skills that

have been imparted to them, they could be asked to hire not one or two but five girls at a time. A

benchmark would be applied to such businesses with some incentivizing that they retain a high

proportion of these girls for, let‘s say, at least a year, given the high levels of pregnancy; through

this structure, the businesses could demonstrate that they are creating a female-friendly

environment. It was observed in this discussion that a single girl will not be able to transform a

work environment (a girl with a partner will do better), but perhaps in some kinds of

environments one might want to go beyond pairing.

We discussed the different roles of pairing: social support; safety; possible classroom

applications and other classroom functions; helping girls, especially but not exclusively with

babies, balancing the competing pressures of their lives; sharing homework and supporting each

other in assignments; possibly creating links that last beyond the training into joint enterprise.

32

While groups were creative in thinking about how to use pairing, the core value of this session

was developing a more standardized understanding and moving from implicit understanding of

social support and friendships that girls establish to using it as a purposeful strategy.

A common concern was the timing of asking the girls to make pairs, stressing that some time

must elapse for them to test out and get to know the others. It was also stressed that they didn‘t

necessarily need to pick a best friend of even a regular study partner but someone who was

―geographically desirable,‖ that is might assist them in getting to and from school and feeling

more comfortable in the program. The pairing used in this way, that is encouraging girls to pick

those who live near, further potentiates the value of concentrating girl leadership resources in

specific catchment areas.

One proposal made and accepted was that once the pairs were formed they would then work

together in anticipating the specific ways in which they plan to collaborate and then inform the

class. They will be instructed to review both their anticipated value from it, as well as the ways

in which it actually functions. Substantial discussion was devoted to ways in which the service

providers can document the formations of the pairs, monitor success, and assist in re-coupling

girls (either poorly selected) or with whom they don‘t get on. It was anticipated that in

monitoring outcomes for girls in formal pairs compared to those not, the girls themselves would

be asked in one-on-one meetings what benefits they had derived from pairings, expected and

unexpected.

6. Community Engagement and Commitment

This was a physically intense session with posters places all over the room drawing up the

features of the nine communities that affect the program implementation, including their

population bases, physical social structures, ethnic, linguistic, and other features.

A persistent issue that was not resolved in this discussion was whether there would be agreed

upon size of catchment areas from which to recruit. There were communities which were defined

(informally) as having as many as 20,000 members in the catchment area, as compared to some

that have as few as 5,000. From the point of view of concentrating resources, manageability,

standardization of recruitment and certainly study design, standardizing within some range the

size of the catchment area within each of the nine communities would be strongly advised.

Give the density of Monrovia, it is possible to do some degree of standardization, and where

there is extreme diversity (some of the communities are fishing communities and have a different

flavor) their specific conditions understood both for implementation and research reasons.

In the subsequent meeting to discuss the results of the coverage exercise, a graphic was presented

(see below) for a catchment area of 35,000-far too large-with nonetheless gives specific numbers

for types of girls that might be in effect present in catchment areas. If one took 1/7 of this for

example, one would have an image of what a 5,000 person neighborhood in Monrovia might

look like.

33

3

Another subject covered that underscored the earlier discussions of community engagement was

the notion of community contracts. When meeting with the community to put forward t EPAG as

a ―new resource‖ for the community, what is the community going to do in return? It is not

simply a question of the community‘s expectations but what it will provide, for example a

meeting space. This conversation moved towards the discussion of the ―best case scenario.‖

Though outside the scope of the current EPAG agreements but consistent with sustainability, it

would be very valuable to build a strong and forward-looking relationship and written/posted

agreement as intense as possible with the community.

3 Bruce, Judith. Fostering an Evidence-Based, Collaborative Country Response to the Problems Facing Adolescents,

Especially Girls: An Update Monrovia, Liberia. July 2009

34

Community engagement: Engage communities in making explicit commitments. For

example, the community could:

• Allow, support with safety, house-to-house surveys

• Support an open, comprehensive, and deep recruitment process

• Agree to provide space in existing facilities for meetings, recruitment, training, follow up

• Agree to establish a specific venue for a girls‘ social and economic empowerment center

• Agree to girls protection strategies - put in street lights, developed specific security and

protection procedures

• Agree to facilitate personal documentation for mentors, for girls

• Agree to organize service provision and entitlement programs at times of days, seasons,

and weeks which make them more accessible to girls

Community engagement: Seek the best case scenario: Making the girl program a point of

pride and visibility in the community:

If this relationship evolves in the most positive way possible – how can it be signaled to the

outside world that this is a girl friendly environment?

– ID cards with the imprimatur of the community

– Specific venue identified as a social, economic empowerment center for girls and

women

– Banners

– Posted hours and posted rights of girls to use spaces

– Color coding a safety zone

– Your ideas?

The best time to craft a contract with the community is at the beginning when there is a great

deal of leverage. It is vital that the communities understand that this program is an asset to the

community, that they are not doing anyone a favor, and that this must be done before certain

girls are selected (because others won‘t be and there may be some divisions after the selection

process is over). This also allows for the possibility down the road to create community

incentives. If the community reaches a certain standard of compliance or resourcing of the girls

center or some girl investment, is there something that they want or need in return: a sanitation

point, a water point, an extension of the electrical grid? In peri-urban areas with uneven services,

community participation out the outset is rewarded down the road by explicit agreement.

35

7. Introducing Financial Literacy to Business Development and Job Skills Training

The session on financial literacy for girls and young women started with a short introduction on

what financial education is, why it is important for girls and young women, and how it can

compliment program strategies such as EPAG that promote girls‘ economic empowerment (see

box below). The session then introduced participants to a specific training tool through a

participatory exercise. In small groups they reviewed the learning sessions of a financial

education curriculum designed specifically for young people in low-income communities in

developing countries (Global Financial Education Program, 2008, ―Young People Your Money

Your future.‖) Participants reviewed each of the topics, considered their relevance to girls in

Liberia, and discussed how they might be incorporated into their life skills/livelihood training

curriculum. The session concluded with general agreement on the relevance of financial

education to the EPAG girls, the ‗bridging‘ role it plays between the economic and social aspects

of the program, and the importance of including it systematically as part of the life skills

curriculum.

Community engagement: Identify with input from girls which males need attention

• Fathers (fostering unwanted sexual initiation through marriage, withdrawal from

school).

• Older males predating on younger girls. The age gap between ―partners‖ at sexual

initiation is often greater than at any other point in the sexual lifecycle.

• Clusters of men in specific private/public locations which create risks and often

confine girls‘ movements, thereby limiting their ability to build health, social, and

economic assets.

• Employers of girls in domestic service, girls who are in exploitative and often

illegal underage work.

• Brothers :

o Who by not carrying their fair share of family labor limit girls.

o May actively discourage their sisters from participating in new

opportunities under the guise of ―protecting‖ their reputations.

• Partners who wish to control their behavior, their income, do not do their fair

share, are violent, do not collaborate in protected sexual relations

36

What is financial education?

Financial education focuses on concepts of money and how to manage it well. Through financial

education, girls gain knowledge, skills and attitudes that they can use to:

- Adopt good money management practices

- Make decisions about earning, saving, spending and borrowing money and the use of financial services

- Set financial goals, budget money, track expenses, and save for the future

Why is financial education important for girls?

- The more girls know about money, the more power and control they will have over their lives

- Financial literacy prepares girls for the decisions, challenges, and opportunities they face -- over time

and at critical junctures -- as they move into the economic world

How can financial education support program strategies that promote girls‟ economic

empowerment?

- FE is an entry point for working with girls

- FE is not patronizing. Adolescents and parents both like it

- When combined with supportive social networks, links to market opportunities, and youth oriented

financial products and services, financial education can be a strong catalyst for changing behaviors

around money management.

How does financial education prepare girls for their economic future?

- By building an understanding of principles of good money management

- By promoting awareness of personal financial issues and choices

- By developing knowledge, skills and behaviors to manage day to day expenses, prepare for life cycle

events, set financial goals and develop strategies to achieve them

- Introducing concepts of assets, capital formation, and wealth creation

- Making girls more informed financial decision makers as they move into adulthood

See Annex C for workshop handout on the Global Financial Education Program‟s list of financial education

learning sessions)

37

8. Microfinance Savings and Credit

The discussion of savings and credit was one of the liveliest and most important during the five

days. It was an opportunity for groups involved in microfinance in Liberia , including BRAC, the

IRC and LEAP to present their experience with savings and credit for vulnerable groups.

Each of the three groups presented general outlines of their microfinance programs, which for

the most part were credit rather than savings centered. Regarding credit, they were questioned

closely as to the criterion for participation in terms of personal documentation, assumed social

support, transportation, available resources to save for collateral, ability to wait a period of time

to receive a loan, the desirability of receiving a loan, and the terms of repayment of an individual

to receive an individual loan in light of the characteristics of the girls. The initial discussions

about the policies, procedures and terms and conditions of loans were informative, but indicated

that not all girls will fit the criteria of financial service providers. Continued discussions and

thinking on how young women who complete the training can be prepared and supported to link

with credit services will be important. Specific attention is needed to identify loan products or

loan product adaptations that fit their credit needs without exposing them to high risk borrowing.

Questions addressed by Liberian financial service providers in the Quality Enhancement

Workshop

SAVINGS

1. What are the savings products you provide?

2. Who do you provide them to?

3. What is your experience, if any, in providing savings services to adolescent girls (16-24

years)?

4. What are the constraints to providing savings services to adolescent girls in Liberia (for

example, demand from girls, legal issues, etc.)?

5. How can savings products and services for girls be expanded?

CREDIT

1. What credit products and services do you provide?

2. Who do you provide them to?

3. What is your previous experience, in any in providing credit to young people? To young

women (18-24 years)?

4. What is your previous experience, if any, in serving clients that are referred to you by

another organization? What are the challenges?

5. What are the opportunities and constraints to extending credit products and services to

adolescent girls (18-24 years)? (for example, product design, product delivery, credit

raining needs, legal issues, etc.)

38

The discussion further highlighted the critical role that savings can play for girls in planning

ahead and managing risks and the importance for girls to have a safe and accessible place to

save. As became clear in the presentations, many of the microfinance institutions do not offer

stand alone saving products, but rather tie their savings to credit. Recognizing importance of

savings for girls and young women, the project was further strengthened by the commitment

(though at the time of the workshop not consolidated) to give each girl $25 dollars in a savings

account at the conclusion of her training. The proposal was made that half of the money be given

at the outset and that the presence of that money (roughly $12.50) would serve as:

A kind of psychological leverage on her increasing participation

Evidence of a contract commitment important to a girl who had experienced minimal

predictability in social relationships

Valuable as a didactic tool in understanding the financial literacy piece and thinking

about her future

Possibly a ―leveler of the playing field,‖ allowing some of the more disadvantaged girls

to remain involved because their participation had a ―shadow value.‖ Direct benefit to

them and perhaps a negotiation with intimates

While savings initially was beyond the scope of this project, the discussions in this session

suggest there is scope in Liberia for developing savings products for girls. Building on the

experience of current efforts in several other countries (Kenya, Uganda, Burundi, Mongolia,

Dominican Republic), the proposition was put forward that savings were a far more important

innovation than credit for girls, though the two could be easily linked. The experiences of the

Population Council and Microfinance Opportunities and partners in Kenya (Binti Pamoja, Krep

Bank and Faulu Bank) shows that starting with an approach that builds group solidarity and

financial literacy provides a platform to introduce individual savings, either under a lock box or

guarding arrangement or even directly with banks through individual accounts (and there are

now savings products for girls 10 and up). Starting with financial literacy and savings prepares

girls, over time, to make informed decisions about taking loan. The strength of promoting

economic participation in a stepwise phased fashion is that girls get initial social support, learn

about personal savings options, and are prepared to assess the risks and make informed decisions

about economic participation that makes sense for them individually. This approach also

protects the financial service providers by preparing girls to be better clients and lower risk

borrowers.

This conversation was extremely animated and included a concern that girls should not be

threaded into the formal banking systems at all because it was ―risky.‖ The Population Council

team made a strong pitch for including girls in the formal economy and not excluding them since

the history of girls and women‘s exclusion from new opportunities is often justified on the need

to ―protect‖ women. It was obviously clear that the formal financial system needed much

improvement, but that girls would benefit by having knowledge of it – both the risks and benefits

– in order to make informed decisions and some stake in it. There was also recognition that

girls, similar to other groups, also benefit through participation in informal financial systems

(e.g., rotating savings and credit associations) that support their economic lives.

39

In discussing the initial $25 savings, a final argument was that the girls who are given a stake

early on might ―cash it out.‖ This was addressed by the observation that learning requires making

some mistakes early, and the best-case scenario is that the person learning makes a mistake that

is sub-fatal. It was also suggested that one could make it impossible for the girls to cash out

before a certain point, but even if they did, that too would be a learning experience.

The results of the savings discussion seemed to be fruitful in the following week. The providers

decided that all girls would have formal savings accounts (negotiated with financial institutions)

and that these accounts would contain $5 at the outset period. This is an extremely innovative

and positive development and one we hope will be replicated in the other adolescent girls

initiative sites across Africa and Asia.

40

9. Working Sessions with Workshop Facilitators

Judith Bruce: My one-to-one time with contractors was spent focusing mainly on this issue of

building the social infrastructure around girls and women, linking it closely with their economic

performance and finding ways to make the gains of EPAG permanent.

Several contractors discussed the difficulty of developing girl leadership. It is very striking in

Liberia that there has been relatively little development among even youth leadership groups of

young female leaders. Indeed, one of the leading programs that I have worked with while I was

there has admitted that of the thirty-eight youths that turn up for regular public testimony and

advocacy, only two are girls. It is for precisely this reason—a difficultly one sees across Africa,

but particularly in post-conflict situations—that time had been devoted earlier on Day 2 of the

workshop on developing a girls‘ leadership program. As per longer term recommendations, it

would seem to me to be extremely important early on in this process (and with the Adolescent

Girls‘ Working Group and other supportive structures) to give concerted attention to all design

features that build leadership among older adolescent girls and young women and creating

separate ―wings‖ to existing structures to foster female-only spaces, female participation and

crucially, female leadership. We proposed that equal participation is not sufficient, but rather

proportion to the risk was a special bias to younger girls who are at extremely high risk of sexual

bias (a year ago the data suggested that half of the rates in Liberia report to girls under 15). In the

context of youth centers for example, the possibility of having the possibility of the New

Japanese Security Fund program yield 70 of 100 slots to female and of those, 50 to girls 15 and

under-stratifying access and participation by age and gender to ensure girls get initially and keep

their fair share. This recommendation is further underscored by the results of the Liberian

coverage exercise which showed a skewing females‘ use of youth services over males; that is,

females are much more likely to be using treatment-pregnancy related services- rather than asset-

building services. This is a generic problem for Liberia and one in which EPAG can directly

address.

Bruce made the proposal to keep track and keep in touch with all females who present in any

point of the recruitment process in each of the nine communities-all who want to be included-in a

regular meeting forum of girls participating in the program.

The concentration of girls/young women of the nine communities (between 300-900) should be

used to create a girl CORE/CORPS for social and economic empowerment of girls and women.

Even more ambitious, but perhaps achievable, would be the designation of a specific publically-

labeled venue in each community (as emphasized in the earlier discussion on community

engagement) as a women and girls‘ social and economic empowerment center. This could be an

existing structure which had designated hours for at least 4 hours every week. At least.

This center would be resourced by the EPAG-trained girls and their mentors and would be

operate best with a stipend, clearly identified leader or leadership pair. This formal establishment

of a physical venue could serve as potential point of connection for more skilled volunteers (such

as those coming through the Goldman Sachs‘s ―10,000 Women‘s Program) might optimized

what was already a big beginning and provide a sustainable link into the future after the

conclusion of EPAG. In each of the nine communities there will be a core of females who have

41

mastered financial literacy, at least at rudimentary levels, have savings accounts, confidence, job

skills, and income flows. These girls/young women should be marshaled into some kind of

ongoing resource to each other and to a widening circle of women and girls with a special

emphasis on reaching down the age spectrum to support girls so that they see themselves as

economic actors and being to acquire skills. The EPAG participants could offer financial literacy

leadership training, guidance in how to establish savings, and even perhaps community-based

enterprises that use such a center as a core link. With so many women interested in self-

employment there might be a possibility of a community base where goods could be stored in

common. Some accounting and wholesale purchasing could be done in common. Micro-finance

groups which have pro-poor products (though not yet fully girl-friendly, see below) could recruit

at such centers on a regular basis in picking up prepared girls who except the risks and

requirements of existing microfinance packages while not in the process, losing their attachment

to a core group of female social support. There are many economic trade-ons.

Jennefer Sebstad: My discussions with workshop participants focused on a range of topics

including ways to incorporate financial education into the life skills curricula, how financial

education and savings are complimentary, clarification on the recruitment and evaluation

strategy, and the challenge of linking girls to future jobs or resources to start businesses.

The main points from the first two areas (financial education and savings) are covered above.

Regarding recruitment and evaluation, the contractors expressed strong commitment to be part of

a systematic evaluation that will test the impact of the project on participants. The presentation

on the design of the impact assessment was extremely helpful for everyone in understanding the

common framework that will be applied and the kinds of questions that will be addressed. One

issue that was raised in the discussion was that the standard recruitment strategy and the random

selection strategy will constrain the ability of contractors to select participants they believe will

have the best chance of achieving success in the training. Since access to a second round of

funding depends on the contractors achieving certain benchmark results in terms of the numbers

of girls finding and keeping employment/businesses, this was further discussed. While the

concern remains, it was clarified that while the process of recruitment would be standardized, the

criteria for participation in each of the four programs will be specific to that program; and all

girls in the eligible pool for selection into that program will be required to meet this program

criteria. Close monitoring of this issue in the course of the project will be important.

A recurrent topic in my discussions with participants was the challenge they face in achieving

the ultimate objective of the training – linking girls to jobs and getting them started in viable

businesses. Preparing girls for jobs and businesses through training and social support is critical

but focuses mostly on the supply side. Continued focus on the demand side in terms of

understanding the demands of employers in the skill areas in which the girls are trained, and

developing the best strategies for linking girls to jobs in these areas, and for facilitating girls‘

access to resources and markets for businesses will be important for achieving the purpose of the

project.

42

ANNEX A: HANDOUT ON MENTORING

Characteristics of Mentors: Some Possible Considerations

1. Demographic characteristics

Age

Gender

Marital status

Parental status

In some dimensions, should the mentors be similar to mentees?

2. Skills and knowledge

What education level should be required?

Should they be tested?

How will competency be determined?

Do they know the topics well enough to teach them?

3. Economic history/Assets

Are they employed now? Where are they employed? How many hours do they work?

What economic skills do they have?

What economic knowledge so they have?

What economic assets do they have?

Do they have a bank account?

4. Time availability

5. Residence

Do they live in/near the community?

Do they live in/near the training center?

6. Personal characteristics

Are they empathetic? Are they approachable?

In the view of the community, are they respected as decent?

Do they have a talent for conflict resolution?

7. Administrative skills

Can keep good written records

Has experience in systematic information capture

8. Judgment/Maturity

to trouble shoot

43

to know what they can and cannot handle

to be discreet - can they keep confidences appropriately

Possible Roles of Mentors and Some Structural Implications

Possible roles of mentors Some structural implications

Hear about girls personal problems/life

situations

Help girls with crisis management (with

other girls, with partners, with families)

Chart personal progress of girls

One-to-one meetings (How often? Where?)

Ratio of mentors to girls

Live close to the girls (what are the pluses

and minuses)

Confidentiality policy

Referral resources for emergencies

Should mentors be matched to girls e.g.,

demographically or culturally?

44

ANNEX B: HANDOUT ON PAIRING STRATEGY

Handout on Pairing Strategies

EPAG Project Quality Enhancement Workshop

Monrovia, Liberia

Friday, July 17, 9-11

1. Why do you think pairing girls is a good idea? What are some of the challenges you

foresee?

2. In pairing the girls, is two enough? Is three okay?

3. For each age group of girls (15-18 and 19-24 years) what is your plan for working with the

girls to pick a partner?

What are some of the options for pairing strategies?

o Assignment within a close geographic area?

o Free choice within a particular geographic area?

What is your specific plan for pairing girls who do not easily or immediately find a

partner?

What kind of girl might have difficulty getting a partner?

Do you think girls will welcome being paired with girls who are close to their own age

rather than an older girl?

What are the implications of pairing girls with babies together with girls without babies?

4. When should the pairing take place?

At the first session? Why or why not?

At the end of the first week? Why or why not?

Other time? Why or why not?

5. It has been proposed that each pair or threesome develops an explicit plan for how they will

support each other.

What should these plans include? What makes sense for girls in your communities?

o Discuss some of things the pairing plans might include, for example:

Transportation to class

Sharing materials in class, sitting close to each other in class

Sharing school materials/notes outside of class

Working together on joint projects

Out of school study support (do some homes have lights and other not?)

45

Helping each other mange absence during illness

Getting home after class

Sharing other out of school/family and child care responsibilities to

support participation.

Managing during stressful moments (e.g., exams, rainy season)

What level of guidance should be provided in developing these plans? (can the girls do

this initially without too much direction?)

Through what process should the plans be finalized/agreed upon?

How should the initial plans be documented?

What support should be provided in helping the girls to implement these plans?

6. How should the mentors relate to the pairs/threesomes?

Should mentors only meet one-on-one?

Should they meet with the pairs/threesomes?

Or some combination

7. What should the girls in pairs and their mentors document about their pairing experience?

Girls reports on their pairing experience: What they like about pairing; Why? What do

they do together? How often they do these things? What unexpected things or surprises

happened? What did NOT work out? Why?

Mentor reports on their view of the pairs/ threesomes: frequency of meetings; topics

covered; dynamics; evaluation of the value; what they felt they could do; what they felt

they were not prepared or unable to do.

8. What should the girls document about their experience with the mentors?

Should they report as individuals or in pairs?

What should the reports cover? (Frequency; topics covered; what the mentor could help

with; what the mentor could not help with).

9. What will happen if some pairs/threesomes don‘t work out?

Why might the pairs/threesomes not work out (for example, because of

distance/convenience; personality clashes, cultural factors, other?)?

How will we know?

When will we know?

What will be done to resolve this problem?

10. At the end of the training, we will evaluate the pairing strategy. What do we want to learn

from the girls in pairs/threesomes:

What do we want to learn from the mentors?

What do we want to learn from the teachers?

46

What performance benchmarks should we pay special attention to? How?

ANNEX C: HANDOUT ON FINANCIAL EDUCATION LEARNING SESSION TOPICS

LEARNING SESSIONS AT A GLANCE

(from “Young People: Your Future, Your Money”, Global Financial Education Program,

Microfinance Opportunities and Freedom from Hunger)

The goal of this module is to help participants manage their money effectively. The following

table presents the module‘s learning sessions and their purposes.

SESSION TITLE PURPOSE OF THE SESSION

Chapter 1: Managing Money

1. Want to Manage Your

Money? Start by

Saving

Identify and prioritize reasons for saving

Identify personal savings goals

2. The Savings Plan Develop a savings plan required to attain a savings goal

Prioritize savings goals

3. Making Spending

Decisions

Distinguish between needs and wants

Make decisions about spending priorities

4. Money In/Money Out:

The Art of Budgeting

Create a simple budget

Use a budget to cover a budget shortfall

5. Develop Your Own

Budget

Develop a personal budget for 1 week

Identify the ways in which a budget can vary

Examine the rules of savings

6. Challenges to Savings Identify the challenges to saving that adolescents face

Propose solutions to challenging situations

Chapter 2: Financial Services

1. So You Need a Lump

Sum of Money?

Identify 2 ways to gain access to a lump sum (saving and borrowing)

Compare and contrast the 2 ways to access a lump sum

2. Savings Options Identify multiple savings options

Describe and compare savings options

3. To Bank or Not to

Bank?

Identify and clarify common myths about banks

Compare advantages and disadvantages of saving at home and

saving at a bank

4. Your Own Money vs.

Someone Else‘s Money

Differentiate between one‘s own money and borrowed money

Identify the responsibilities of borrowing and the consequences of

failing to meet them

5. Borrow Wisely Identify characteristics of borrowed money

Determine good reasons for borrowing money

6. Sources of Loans Define credit terminology

Examine different sources of loans

47

Compare 3 different sources of loans

48

SESSION TITLE PURPOSE OF THE SESSION

Chapter 3: Financial Negotiations

1. What is Financial Negotiation?

Define financial negotiation

Recognize that financial negotiations are part of everyday life Describe the possible outcomes of a financial negotiation

2. Communicate with Success

Identify good and bad communication practices Practice effective listening skills

3. Resolving Conflicts about Money

Practice using communication skills in made-up conflicts Identify several solutions to the same conflict.

4. Prepare to Negotiate Summarize the process of preparing to negotiate Practice preparing to negotiate

5. Share Financial Negotiation Skills with Parents or Guardians

Communicate with adults who are not their parents Demonstrate good and bad communication practices Identify ways to improve financial negotiations with the adults

Chapter 4: Earning Money

1. Exploring Options for Earning Money

Identify various options for earning money Select work options that are most appealing to them

2. Matching Personal Qualities and Skills to Work Options

Match skills and character traits to distinct types of work Identify their own character qualities and skills and/or interests

Select types of work that might suit them given their personality and skills

3. Pathways to Self-Employment

Examine pathways to self-employment Analyze the advantages and disadvantages of self-employment

4. Pathways to Wage-Employment

Examine wage-employment options Compare the advantages and disadvantages of self- and wage

employment

5. Gender Stereotypes and Career Choices

Identify how gender stereotypes influence occupational choices Select a non-traditional occupation to investigate further

6. How Do I Learn More? Discuss ways to learn more about occupations that interest them Identify possibilities for networking Develop an action plan to learn more about occupations

49

WORKSHOP AGENDA: JULY 16-17

ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT OF ADOLESCENT GIRLS (EPAG) PROJECT

QUALITY ENHANCEMENT WORKSHOP

Monrovia, Liberia

July 16-17, 2009

DAY FOUR

When What

9:00-10:00 Welcome and EPAG Project Overview

Anthea Zervos

10:00 – 10:30 Tea & Coffee Break

10:30 – 1:00 Presentations by Service Providers

Emily Stanger

1. Characteristics of target communities

2. Proposed Job/business areas

3. Proposed curriculum

(5 min. per theme, per provider)

1:00 – 2:00 Lunch

2:00 – 3:00 Introduction to Impact Evaluation

Shubha Chakravarty

3:00 – 5:00 Recruitment AND Selection for an Effective Impact Evaluation

Andrew Morrison and Judith Bruce

1. Presentations by service providers on recruitment strategy (10 min. per provider)

2. Building a common recruitment strategy

5:00 – 5:45 Working Sessions with Workshop Facilitators

Informal Discussions with Workshop Facilitators

Areas of expertise:

Judith Bruce – Adolescent girl/Gender expertise

Shubha Chakravarty and Daniel Kirkwood – Recruitment/Impact evaluation

Andrew Morrison – Vocational training

Yohannes Wolday – Mentorship

Jennefer Sebstad – Business development (BD) and financial literacy

Anthea Zervos – EPAG project questions

50

DAY FIVE

When What

9:00-11:00 mentoring and pairing

1. Presentations by Service Providers on Strategies for Mentoring (5 min. per

provider)

2. Discussion on Pairing (Judith)

3. Breakout sessions for Business Development (BD) and Job Skills Service

Providers on Pairing (Andy and Judith)

11:00-11:30 Tea & Coffee Break

11:30– 1:00 Community Engagement and Commitment

Implications of recruitment process for community engagement

Core stakeholders who must be supportive

Inventory of physical and social resources for each community

Expectations from communities (e.g., meeting space)

Delineation of catchment areas

1:00 – 2:00 Lunch

2:00 – 3:00 Introducing Financial Literacy to BD and Job Skills Training

What is financial literacy?

Adapting to girls in your program

3:00-4:00 Microfinance: Savings

Case studies in developing girls‘ savings products

Short presentations on savings by Liberian microfinance institutions

(10 min. each)

4:00-5:00 Microfinance: Credit

Short presentations by the BD service providers on proposed strategies (10

min. each)

Short presentations on credit by Liberian microfinance institutions (10 min.

each)

5:00 – 5:45

Working sessions with workshop facilitators

Informal Discussions with Workshop Facilitators

Areas of expertise:

Judith Bruce – Adolescent girl/Gender expertise

Shubha Chakravarty and Daniel Kirkwood – Recruitment/Impact evaluation

Andrew Morrison – Vocational training

Yohannes Wolday – Mentorship

Jennefer Sebstad – Business development (BD) and financial literacy

Anthea Zervos – EPAG project questions

51

APPENDIX D: LIST OF PARTICIPANTS

Name Organization Country Email Phone Skype

Khlaid

Bashiru

Girls Growth

and

Development

(GIGDEV)

Ghana [email protected] +233 071-

91033

+233

0245280250

bash.khalid

Alhassan

Musah

Regional

Advisory

Information

Network System

(RAINS)

Ghana [email protected] +233 071-

23406

+233

0208128077

simbaakos

Vida

Owusu

Regional

Advisory

Information

Network System

(RAINS)

Ghana [email protected] +233 071-

23406

+233

0243211097

maamebrago

Selina

Esantsi

Population

Council

Ghana [email protected] +233 021-780

711/2

+233 0244 640

876

+233 020 891

9229

nafosuaa

Helious

Dablu

Women‘s

Initiative for

Self-

Empowerment

(WISE)

Ghana [email protected] +233 021

781002/3

+233 0244-

864562

helious.maka

fui.dablu

Mavis

Dontoh

Women‘s

Initiative for

Self-

Empowerment

(WISE)

Ghana [email protected]

[email protected]

+233 021-

781002/3

+233 0277-

424039

Lammie

Dixon

Community

Empowerment

Program (CEP

Liberia [email protected] +231 (0)6

517160

Garvoie

Kardoh

Community

Empowerment

Program (CEP)

Liberia [email protected] +231 (0)6

493348

52

Name Organization Country Email Phone Skype

John

Kolubah

Community

Empowerment

Program (CEP)

Liberia [email protected] +231 (0)6

520809

Cammue

O. Makor

Community

Empowerment

Program (CEP)

Liberia [email protected] +231 (0)6

588902

Lucy Page Community

Empowerment

Program (CEP)

Liberia [email protected] +231 (0)6

55206 6

Eugenia P.

Dormeyan

Liberia

Entrepreneurial

and Economic

Development

(LEED)

Liberia +231 (0)6

836761

Avril

Fortuin

Liberia

Entrepreneurial

and Economic

Development

(LEED)

Liberia [email protected] +231 (0)6

899466

Clarence

Ketter

Liberia

Entrepreneurial

and Economic

Development

(LEED)

Liberia +231 (0)6

568657

Stanley P.

Mulbah

Liberia

Entrepreneurial

and Economic

Development

(LEED)

Liberia +231 (0)6

476036

Andrew

Volkwyn

Liberia

Entrepreneurial

and Economic

Development

(LEED)

Liberia

Roye Bloh American

Refugee

Committee

(ARC)

Liberia +231 (0)6

446231

Tom Ewert American

Refugee

Committee

Liberia

53

Name Organization Country Email Phone Skype

(ARC)

Sam Harris American

Refugee

Committee

(ARC)

Liberia +231 (0)6

594763

Cooper

Myers

American

Refugee

Committee

(ARC)

Liberia

Abdul

Rajaas

Sherif

American

Refugee

Committee

(ARC)

Liberia +231 (0)6

341306

Lindsey

Reif

American

Refugee

Committee

(ARC)

Liberia +231 (0)6

446231

Barclay B.

Dennis

International

Rescue

Committee

(IRC)

Liberia +231 (0)6

533651

Deola O.

Famak

International

Rescue

Committee

(IRC)

Liberia [email protected] +231 (0)6

512145

Princess

Gibson

International

Rescue

Committee

(IRC)

Liberia +231

077114916

Melissa

Horn

International

Rescue

Committee

(IRC)

Liberia [email protected] +231

077670775

Dennis

Kronakuma

International

Rescue

Committee

(IRC)

Liberia +231 (0)6

576386

54

Name Organization Country Email Phone Skype

Sylvie

Louchez

International

Rescue

Committee

(IRC)

Liberia [email protected] +231

77955952

Elijah

Okeyo

International

Rescue

Committee

(IRC)

Liberia [email protected] +231

077656256

Amanda

Sim

International

Rescue

Committee

(IRC)

Liberia [email protected] +231

077656156

Leisel

Talery

International

Rescue

Committee

(IRC)

Liberia [email protected] +231 (0)6

814278

Deroe

Weeks

International

Rescue

Committee

(IRC)

Liberia [email protected] +231 (0)6

517116

Vashta

Browne

Liberian

Ministry of

Gender and

Development

Liberia +231 (0)6

463544

Rufus

Kaine

Liberian

Ministry of

Gender and

Development

Liberia [email protected] +231 (0)6

463544

Emily

Stanger

Liberian

Ministry of

Gender and

Development

Liberia [email protected] +231 (0)6 751

394

Anthea

Zervos

Liberian

Ministry of

Gender and

Development

Liberia [email protected] +231 (0)6 209

238

Samuel

Mulbah

Ministry of

Youth and

Sports

Liberia [email protected]

55

Name Organization Country Email Phone Skype

Marilyn

Gaye

Ministry of

Youth and

Sports

Liberia [email protected]

Timothy

Paulus

Ministry of

Youth and

Sports

Liberia [email protected]

Chernor

Bah

UNFPA Liberia [email protected]

Philip

Davies

Family Planning

Association of

Liberia (FPAL)

Liberia

Ruth A.

Konteh

Family Planning

Association of

Liberia (FPAL)

Liberia

Henry

Yanqudi

Family Planning

Association of

Liberia (FPAL)

Liberia

Lucy

Bondon

Center for

Liberia

Assistance

(CLA)

Liberia

Garmia

Gaye

Center for

Liberia

Assistance

(CLA)

Liberia

Garrison

Kerwillian

YMCA Liberia [email protected]

Dexter

Merchant

YMCA Liberia [email protected]

Doris CB

Geedeh

Touching

Humanity in

Need of

Kindness

(THINK) Inc.

Liberia

Elizabethe

Kwemi

Touching

Humanity in

Need of

Kindness

(THINK) Inc.

Liberia

56

Name Organization Country Email Phone Skype

James

Brown

Federation of

Liberian Youth

(FLY)

Liberia [email protected]

Venisa K.

Mayson

Federation of

Liberian Youth

(FLY)

Liberia [email protected]

T. Edwin

Kamara

Children‘s

Assistance

Program (CAP)

Liberia

Andrew

Morrison

World Bank

Mission

Liberia [email protected]

Shubha

Chakravarty

World Bank

Mission

Liberia [email protected]

Daniel

Kirkwood

World Bank

Mission

Liberia [email protected]

Yohannes

Wolday

Nike Foundation Liberia [email protected]

Gloria

Kangaju

Sannoh

Sierra Leone

Youth

Empowerment

Organization

(SLYEO)

Sierra

Leone

[email protected]

Amienatta

Kanawa

Sierra Leone

Youth

Empowerment

Organization

(SLYEO)

Sierra

Leone

[email protected]

Suleiman

Bangura

Sierra Leone

Youth

Empowerment

Organization

(SLYEO)

Sierra

Leone

[email protected]

Karen

Austrian

Population

Council

Kenya [email protected] +254 202-

713480

karenaustrian

Judith

Bruce

Population

Council

USA [email protected] +212-339-

0641

judith.bruce.

pcny

Sarah

Engebretsen

Population

Council

USA [email protected] +212-339-

0678

sneedham-

pcny

57

Name Organization Country Email Phone Skype

Jennefer

Sebstad

Independent

Consultant

USA [email protected] +617-484-

0647

jsebstad

Adam

Weiner

Population

Council

USA [email protected] +212-339-

0582

adam.weiner

813

58

APPENDIX E: SIX KEY PROGRAM DESIGN QUESTIONS

Six Key Program Design Questions

1) We know that there are many different kinds of adolescent girls – for example: in school and out of

school, married and unmarried, working or not – and each specific group of girls has different

needs and different program considerations. Which specific kinds of girls does your program want

to focus on? Why? How many of these girls do you think you can reach?

2) There is a wide range of problems and issues that the girls you want to work with face.

a. What are the different issues and problems that they face? Please list.

b. Knowing that one program cannot address them all, which specific problems/issues are

alterable and which ones is your program going to try to address and why?

3) Girls also bring to the program a set of assets, skills, and goals of what they want to get out of the

program. What skills do your girls bring to the program? What are their aspirations and what would

they like to get out of the program? (If you don‘t know what their goals are, how will you find that

out?)

4) What specific programmatic activities do you think will be necessary to achieve the objectives you

have outlined so far in terms of the following areas:

a. Identifying and recruiting the girls.

b. Negotiating with gatekeepers (i.e. parents/guardians, community leaders, other

stakeholders).

c. Identifying and training the mentors/deliverers of the program.

d. Specific activities to be held with the girls and other participants.

e. Specific new assets, skills, and opportunities the girls will develop.

f. The levels of participation that you believe will be sufficient to make a difference. (e.g. Is a

one-time contact sufficient or will it be necessary to see a girl at least once a week for a

year?)

g. The percentage of eligible girls in your catchment area you believe must be reached to

make an effective difference. The percentage you can reach in the first round of the

program.

5) At the end of the program, what specific changes would you like to see in the girls? Which of these

do you believe are easily measured and which are less easily measured? How do you plan to

measure these changes? What are some examples of questions you will ask? Identify at least 5 key

areas in which you want to increase girls' assets and improve their situation (e.g. information, skills,

behavior, access, opportunity) and at least 5 areas (e.g. knowledge, management, work

organization, training, and leadership) for mentors and program deliverers.

6) What resources (material, social, informational, and financial) will you need to carry out your

program?

59

APPENDIX F: WORKSHOP EVALUATION RESULTS

By Jennefer Sebstad