Do multi-level adolescent-centric interventions improve girls’ capabilities? Mixed-methods evidence from a cluster randomised controlled trial in Ethiopia
Objectives
The paper aimed to assess the short- and medium-term impacts of multi-level adolescent-centric interventions designed to transform gender norms and improve girls’ capabilities in rural Ethiopia. It sought to compare different layers of programming intensity, from girl-only groups to models including boys, caregivers, communities and asset transfers, and to identify how programme effects vary between marginalised and less marginalised settings.
Findings
Gender-focused programming improved a broad range of girls’ capabilities after one year in highly marginalised environments, across several domains including education, bodily integrity and voice, but these gains were not sustained after an additional one to two years of follow-up. The AWH Essential model, which worked with girls, boys and caregivers, produced the most consistent short-term positive impacts for girls and several outcomes for boys in marginalised sites, while both more and less intensive models showed fewer or less durable effects. In non-marginalised environments there was little evidence of impact on girls’ outcomes regardless of programme intensity, and in sites with weaker community support or inconsistent implementation, effects were small or even negative, underscoring that context and delivery quality strongly shape results.
Recommendations
The authors recommend beginning gender-transformative, multi-level interventions early in adolescence and prioritising models that engage girls, boys and caregivers together, while tailoring intensity to local levels of marginalisation and community readiness. They emphasise the need for strong community support, careful supervision and consistent implementation, alongside economic support where poverty constrains adolescent outcomes, to enhance and sustain programme effects. They also call for longer-term follow-up and mixed-method evaluations that track capabilities across multiple domains, so that programming can be adapted to prevent the fade-out of gains and inform policies that more effectively support adolescent girls over time.
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