ROLE AND CHALLENGES OF COMMUNICATION FOR DEVELOPMENT IN
BUILDING LEADERSHIP OF ADOLESCENT GIRLS
Technical Paper for the XIIth UNRT on Communication for Development
DRAFT
Prepared for UNICEF by Saima Iqbal, Consultant
Edited by C4D Unit, Division of Policy & Practice, UNICEF New York
09 November 2011
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Acronyms
Pg 3
Acknowledgements
Pg 4
Executive Summary
Pg 5
1. Introduction
2. Adolescent Girls’ Leadership: A n Operational Framework
Pg 7
Pg 9
2.1 Adolescence, Girls and Silencing Their Voice
Pg 9
2.2 Normative Framework
Pg 10
2.2.1 The Importance of Participation
Pg 10
2.2.2 Constraints and Barriers to Girls’ Participation
Pg 11
2.2.3 Understanding Leadership and Leadership Competencies
Pg 14
2.2.4 Leadership Outcomes – Empowerment & Agency
Pg 15
2.2.5 Linking Participation, Leadership, Empowerment andAgency
Pg 16
3. Role of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
Pg 20
3.1 Participation, Empowerment, Girls’ Leadership & Communication
Pg 20
3.2 C4D and the Human Rights Based Approach in UN System
Pg 21
3.3 C4D Strategies and Programmes for Girls’ Leadership: Challenges & Opportunities
Pg 22
3.3.1 What do these Case Examples tell us?
Pg 24
4. Strengthening C4D Efforts to Build Leadership of Adolescent Girls
Pg 30
References and Sources
Pg 39
Boxes
1. Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory
Pg 31
Tables
1. Role of Environmental Agents in Supporting Girls’ Empowerment
2. Adolescent Girls’ Programmes with C4D Components: Case Examples Reviewed
3. C4D Approaches, Interventions & Tools to Reach out to & Engage Environmental Agents
Pg 18
Pg 23
Pg 32
Annexures
A. Case Studies – Description of Key Elements
B. Map of C4D Approaches and Methods Employed by Key Programmes Reviewed
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Pg 54
2
ACRONYMS
ACADA
ADAP
A-FSW
AGTF
BCC
C4D
CDC
CEDAW
CfSC
COMBI
CRC
CRPD
FGD
FGM/C
IDI
IEC
ILO
JHU-CCP
KAP
MARA
NYU
QuAKMan
SEM
SOWC
UN
UNESCO
UNFPA
UNHCR
UNICEF
UNIFEM
UNRT
UN Women
WCCD
WHO
: Assessment Communication Analysis Design and Action
: Adolescent Development and Participation Unit/ UNICEF NY
: Adolescent Female Sex Workers
: Adolescent Girls’ Task Force
: Behaviour Change Communication
: Communication for Development
: Centers for Disease Control
: Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women
: Communication for Social Change
: Communication for Behavioural Impact
: Child Rights Convention
: Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
: Focus Group Discussion
: Female Genital Cutting/Mutilation
: In Depth Interviews
: Information Education Communication
: International Labour Organisation
: John Hopkins University - Centre for Communication Programmes
: Knowledge Attitudes Practices
: Most At Risk Adolescents
: New York University
: Quality Assurance and Knowledge Management Unit/UNICEF NY
: Social Ecological Model
: State of the World’s Children Report
: United Nations
: United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation
: United Nations Population Fund
: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
: United Nations Children’s Fund
: United Nations Development Fund for Women (now UN Women)
: United Nations Round Table (on Communication for Development)
: United Nations Women
: World Congress on Communication for Development
: World Health Organisation
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This paper was produced under the guidance and technical support of the Communication for
Development (C4D), Adolescent Development and Participation (ADAP) and Quality Assurance and
Knowledge Management (QuAKMan) Units in the Gender, Rights and Civic Engagement Section of the
Division of Policy and Practice (DPP) at UNICEF New York Headquarters.
Specifically the author would like to thank Marina Komarecki and Paula Claycomb for their valuable
overall guidance and support in the development of this paper. Judith Diers and Mima Perisic from
ADAP provided vital technical guidance and references in the area of adolescent development. Neha
Kapil and Rafael Obregon from C4D provided substantive technical inputs and editorial support.
The author would also like to acknowledge and thank Anandana Kapur for providing essential research
assistance.
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The XIIth UN Round Table on C4D will be hosted by UNICEF in New Delhi from 14 to 17 November 2011
and will focus on showcasing C4D’s role and impact in advancing the rights of adolescent girls. This
paper seeks to contribute towards this end. It examines the application of C4D strategies and
approaches in promoting and building leadership competencies and agency in adolescent girls. It aims to
serve as a background document for discussion and deliberation at the Round Table and builds upon the
knowledge and evidence base in this area. The paper has been developed through extensive
consultations with UNICEF Specialists in Adolescent Development and C4D at New York Headquarters as
well as desk research and analysis of available date and documented examples of country initiatives.
Adolescence is a pivotal period of transition from childhood to adulthood. Research has shown that
what boys and girls learn during this period will greatly influence their personalities and actions as
adults. Harnessing girls potential for positive development during this time has long term benefits for
them, their families, communities and societies and contributes to equality, poverty alleviation and a
realization of human rights. However, the reality for many girls is that they are not afforded the
opportunity to explore, analyse and truly develop from their adolescent experience. Constraints and
barriers posed by socio-cultural and political norms and structures silence girls’ voices. Additionally,
because they are considered children in one instant and grown women the next, they also become
invisible. Investing in girls’ leadership development empowers them to address these constraints and
find and implement their own solutions. Participation, as a right and as a strategy central to the
achievement of adolescent development outcomes, offers a mechanism for building girls’ leadership.
Participation means engaging girls in active and meaningful ways so they are enabled to take decisions
affecting their lives. Having leadership competencies, defined as a core set of knowledge, skills, and
behaviours needed by girls to lead their lives, facilitates their empowerment in gaining control over their
lives, and are essential for developing agency. Recognizing that girls don’t develop in a vacuum and that
living within nested layers of family, community and society greatly influences their development
outcomes, interactions between and among these factors need to be addressed. Creating supportive
environments are necessary for girls to thrive and flourish and exercise their leadership. Thus, in
addition to participation, multi-sectoral investments and creating and supporting enabling environments
are key components in building sustainable leadership in girls. Multi-sectoral investments entail
providing all the ways and means for girls’ development and empowerment including access to quality
education, health information and services, freedom from exploitation and harmful practices, and safe
spaces for connecting with others.
Enabling girls’ participation and building supportive environments means challenging the power
dynamics which impede girls’ leadership development. This requires a change process in which the role
of C4D becomes that of a catalyst in change. Communication is the natural link which transforms
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participation into action for developing girls’ leadership. Participation requires understanding girls’
communication patterns and behaviours and utilization of media for learning and knowledge sharing.
Case studies discussed in the paper provide a small but illustrative set of examples of good practice,
innovations and lessons learned in C4D programming for building adolescent girls’ leadership
competencies. C4D offers approaches, strategies, methodologies and tools in working toward building
self-confidence, self-esteem, and initiative of adolescent girls; building new social and cultural identities
of girls that are rooted in equality; facilitating opportunities for girls to develop competencies and
exercise leadership; promoting a positive vision and asset based approach of young adolescent girls’
development; and providing platforms and channels for girls’ voices. Analysis of available data and
research also points to several challenges in implementing C4D strategies for adolescent girls’
programming. These include: inadequate integration of C4D principles and practice in adolescent girl
interventions and programmes; utilization of widely varying C4D approaches and tools; difficulties in
definition of communication indicators and measurement of impact; varying attention to engaging men
and boys to affect positive development of girls; and lack of an expanded evidence base to determine
which strategies are effective in building girls’ leadership.
Regardless, C4D strategies provide a platform for girls to find their voice, share their experiences,
participate in family and community life, thereby becoming leaders in their own right and transforming
their surroundings. C4D components of programmes should focus on enabling girls’ participation by
developing strategies and tools with a focus on confidence enhancement, skills development and
knowledge growth; building individual skills and capacities in addition to group and community level
interventions; building an enabling environment by encouraging participation of families, community
leaders, and institutional staff like field workers, school teachers and volunteers; identifying
demand/need and creating access to cultural and social resources through equitable policies and
delivery of services . Development programmers and communication specialists need to ground C4D
strategies in proven theoretical frameworks and models such as the socio-ecological model (SEM) and
invest in socio-behavioural and communication research and analysis right from the start of programme
planning. They need to integrate communication approaches that work to identify and recruit the most
marginalized and socially excluded young adolescent girls; adapt these approaches to the realities of the
local culture and environment; ensure rigorous evaluation of communication strategies; and document
and share good practices and case studies. Only then can the power and potential of C4D to build girls’
leadership be realized.
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1. INTRODUCTION
The UN Round Table (UNRT) on Communication for Development (C4D) convenes on a biennial basis
bringing together C4D experts and practitioners from across UN agencies to discuss, strengthen and
coordinate C4D principles and practice in accelerating UN programming efforts. Every UNRT focuses on
a common theme/s as agreed to by the UN inter-agency C4D group and is usually hosted by one or more
UN agencies. The XIIth UN Round Table on C4D will be hosted by UNICEF in New Delhi from 14 to 17
November 2011 and will focus on “adolescent1 girls” as its central theme. The meeting will work toward
the objective of showcasing C4D’s role and impact in advancing the rights of adolescent girls.
In March 2010, the heads of six UN agencies - ILO, UNESCO, UNFPA, UNICEF, UNIFEM, and WHO- issued
a UN Joint Statement “Accelerating Efforts to Advance the Rights of Adolescent Girls”. In the Statement,
issued by the UN Adolescent Girls’ Task Force2, they commit to increasing their agencies’ support to
developing countries to advance key policies and programmes that empower the hardest to reach
adolescent girls, with particular focus on those aged 10-14 years and ensure that they are able to fully
realise their human rights and freedoms. The Joint Statement is a major milestone for UN leadership on
the issue of gender equality and the status of women and girls. It affirms the view that improving the
lives of adolescent girls is a necessary condition for achieving the MDGs, for fulfilling the international
human rights agenda and for fulfilling governments’ responsibilities to women and girls in their society.
Importantly, the Statement presents a set of concrete actions for girls which when pursued together can
have a transformative effect on their health and development. The five strategic priorities for
adolescent girl programmes are:
1. Education of adolescent girls: Ensure adolescent girls have access to quality education and complete
schooling, focusing on their transition from primary to post-primary education and training,
including secondary education and pathways between the formal and non-formal systems.
2. Improve adolescent girls’ health: Ensure adolescent girls’ access to age-appropriate health and
nutrition information and services, including life skills-based sexuality education, HIV prevention and
sexual and reproductive health.
3. Keep adolescent girls free from violence: Prevent and protect girls from all forms of gender-based
violence, abuse and exploitation, and ensure that girls who experience violence receive prompt
protection, services, and access to justice.
4. Promote adolescent girl leaders: Ensure that adolescent girls gain essential economic and social skills
and are supported by mentors and resources to participate in community life.
1While
the understanding and definitions of adolescence vary across organisations and cultures, the UN agrees on the following definitions and
categorisation of age groups (UNICEF SOWC, 2011):
- Children: 0-18 years (as per Convention on the Rights of the Child)
- Adolescents: 10-19 years (within this group 10-14 years as early adolescence; 15-19 as late adolescence)
- Youth: 15-24 years (13-19 years as teenagers; 20-24 years as young adults)
2Recognizing that no single UN agency can adequately meet the myriad needs and rights of adolescent girls, in 2007, six agencies came together
to form the UN Adolescent Girls’ Task Force (AGTF). Co-chaired by UNFPA and UNICEF, the Task Force includes UNESCO, WHO, UNWOMEN,
ILO and UNHCR. In 2011 UNHCR became the seventh signatory.
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5. Count adolescent girls: Work with partners to collect, analyse, and use data on adolescent girls to
advocate for, develop and monitor evidence-based policies and programmes that advance their
well-being and realize their human rights.
In preparation for the XIIth UN Round Table on C4D, several agencies have developed technical papers
that will feed into the discussions at the meeting and contribute towards building an evidence base of
good practice and lessons learned in the area of C4D and Adolescent Girls. The focus of this paper,
commissioned by UNICEF in August 2011, is on promoting adolescent girl leadership through building
agency and asset development, one of the five strategic priorities outlined above. The paper is meant for
development professionals working in the areas of Strategic Communication/ C4D, Gender, Adolescence
and Youth Development and Participation Programmes, and other related areas. Its aims are two-fold:
(1) to present an operational framework for understanding elements that contribute to the
development of leadership competencies and through it, agency and empowerment; and (2) to examine
the role and application of C4D strategies and approaches in promoting and building these
competencies in adolescent girls. To meet these objectives the paper is structured so as to provide an
overview of:
 current thinking on building adolescent girls’ leadership within the context of a rights based
approach, including an examination of how leadership and competencies are currently understood
as well as the predominant socio-cultural, political, economic barriers that exist to prevent the
realization of these rights
 role of Communication for Development (C4D) and key challenges and opportunities in the use of
C4D to build girls’ leadership through an analysis of case examples that show C4D innovation and/ or
impact
 recommendations on relevant strategies and approaches of C4D that can be used to enhance
programming to build leadership competencies of girls
The development of this paper has been based upon extensive consultations with experts in C4D and
adolescent development and programming based in UNICEF, as well as a desk review of literature on:
 Adolescent girls’ development and human rights
 Current approaches to defining leadership and leadership competencies
 Strategies and frameworks on participation and empowerment
 Communication for Development in the UN system
 Examples, case studies of programmes, projects, interventions which provide evidence for successful
and innovative approaches in building leadership competencies of adolescent girls (with a particular
focus on the younger 10-14 year olds) using robust C4D approaches
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2. ADOLESCENT GIRLS’ LEADERSHIP: AN OPERATIONAL FRAMEWORK
2.1 Adolescence, Girls and Silencing their Voice
Adolescence is the bridge between childhood and adulthood. It is one of the most critical periods of
transition that impacts both girls and boys in the present and in their future. It is a time when selfidentities and potential are being shaped. However for many young adolescent girls in developing
countries, this time is a quick and forced jump into adulthood. Girls are not afforded the time nor the
opportunity to explore this transition to find out who they are, what they are becoming, their sense of a
social belonging, or having a say in their life choices “that will serve to enhance or limit their
future”(Hoyt and Kennedy, 2008).
As girls are developing and beginning to realize they have a voice, in many areas of the world they are
being immediately silenced by their surroundings (Gilligan, 2010). Socio-cultural, religious, economic and
political factors strongly influence, if not define, girls’ expected roles and responsibilities. “Prior to
adolescence many girls are able to voice their feelings and demonstrate a strong sense of self” (Baric et
al, 2008). But as they reach puberty3, they start to question themselves and their identity within their
personal and social surroundings. Simultaneously they gain awareness of the cultural norms and social
structures regarding their roles now and as the adult women they are soon expected to become. It is
within this context that the dominating voice of their surroundings overtakes them and creates selfdoubt and hesitation from expressing themselves. “Girls experience a conflict between what they know
and what they are permitted and expected to express outwardly. The resulting forced containment
results in a silencing of voice”(Hoyt and Kennedy, 2008).
So how and when does this happen? The process of gender socialization begins early in a child’s life in all
cultures. Girls and boys are differentiated as early as at birth through initiation rites or cultural practices
such as piercing of girls’ ears, circumcision of infant boys, or dressing either in particular colors. They get
identified as girls and boys and are treated according to the attributes, behaviours, and norms assigned
to their gender (female or male) within their culture and society. Consequently, children respond to this
treatment by learning what it is to be a girl or a boy through the different feelings and behaviours for
each (Lorber, 2000). By the time they become adults, men and women have been ascribed with specific
roles and responsibilities determined along gender lines rather than on ability. Their thoughts and
behaviours have been gender socialized. Alongside the gender socialization process, girls and boys are
also exposed to and learn from the wider socialization process which encompasses age, as well as
attributes which ascribe people belonging to a certain race, religion, ethnicity, economic class, etc.
3
Puberty is generally defined as the biological process which brings physical and physiological changes. And adolescence is defined as the
personal and social experience of puberty. It brings together the worlds of physical, mental, spiritual, emotional, and social development. These
developments do not necessarily take place simultaneously. Girls will develop at their own pace – with some aspects developing earlier than
others- but most happening over the entire period of adolescence. And the two terms are not necessarily exclusive of each other- rather they
are overlapping. See Pipher, 1994.
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For many girls, as they become aware of their social and cultural pressures, the changes and challenges
experienced during adolescence can be overwhelming. Adolescent girls struggle between mixed
messages of society and culture and what they know and feel internally. Often this a direct result of the
larger social power structure in which men are placed over women, boys are placed over girls. In many
contexts, girls’ contributions to their families and communities are also undervalued. Their chores are
hard and laborious: they care expected to cook, clean, tend to younger siblings, travel long distances to
get water, look after the sick, etc. They are expected to shoulder more responsibilities than boys. It is
within this systematic socialization of gendered roles, responsibilities and expectations that girls learn to
put away their feelings and sense of self, independence, opinions, and subsequently voice.
As young girls are forced into adult roles with the expectation of conforming to culturally appropriate
behaviours, their rights are denied. They are given a low status and relegated to the sidelines of society
where they face incredible risks and vulnerabilities. A recent review of research has confirmed that they
are not specifically accounted for in statistics, programmes and basic demographic data, let alone
national policies (Levine et al, 2008). Because they are considered children in one instant and adult,
grown women the next, adolescent girls as a population group have largely been invisible to these
worlds.
2.2 Normative Framework
The two human rights instruments that serve as a critical foundation for the realization of rights of
adolescent girls are the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and the Convention on the
Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). The CRC encompasses all children
up to the age of 18 years and incudes the right to information, education, health services, recreation, life
and livelihood skills, fair juvenile justice, protection from abuse and exploitation and most importantly
the right to express their views and opinions freely and the entitlement to be heard in their expressions.
The CEDW provides the gender lens. The two Conventions overlap across many areas and are mutually
reinforcing. These areas include non-discrimination, right to education and health with provision of
health services, protection from violence, exploitation, and harmful traditional practices. Most relevant
for the achievement and fulfillment of these rights is the right to participation in both Conventions.
2.2.1 The Importance of Participation
Article 12 of the CRC gives every child (including adolescent by definition), who is capable of forming his
or her views the right to express those views freely and receive due weight of those views in accordance
with the age and maturity of the child. This article along with articles 13-17 (the rights to freedoms of
expression, thought, conscience, religion, association, privacy and information) and particularly Article 5
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(which calls on parents and guardians to provide direction and guidance in relation to the evolving
capacities of the child) treat children and adolescents as active participants in their own right. They “are
not merely passive recipients entitled to adult protective care” (Lansdown, 2011). Article 31 is the right
for children to participate in recreation and cultural activities. Similarly in the CEDAW, Article 11
complements article 31 of the CRC and calls for supportive measures for women’s participation in work,
family and public life; participation in economic and cultural activities. Articles 7 and 8 provide the right
to participate in political and public life which are complementary to articles 12, 13, and 15 of the CRC’s
freedoms of expression and association.
Distinct from the idea of participation as a right is the understanding of participation as a strategy for
positive adolescent development outcomes. Adolescents develop and learn through doing, building
social networks, and communicating with others4. For adolescent girls, participation means engaging
them in active and meaningful ways to facilitate their development and enable their decision-making
affecting their lives. Implicit in this engagement is their participation to identify, define, and prioritise
their problems and find and implement solutions with the support of their communities. ‘Meaningful’
participation implies there is a certain level of competence (knowledge, skills and abilities) which
enables them to work through the participation process.
While there is a growing body of evidence which shows that participation contributes to long term
sustainable development, there is a lack of consistency among the development players as to how
participation is conceptualized, operationalized and measured. Nonetheless, participation is the starting
point in engaging with adolescent girls, and realizing their right to voice their views and thoughts. It is
through participation that adolescents develop self- esteem, self-confidence, communication and
negotiation skills, problem solving skills, sense of self- efficacy and an awareness of their rights
(Lansdown, 2011).
2.2.2 Constraints and Barriers to Girls’ Participation
The socialization process of a society introduces identities and structures into its system which define an
individual and groups of individuals with attributes of race, religion, ethnicity, language, geographical
location, etc. with gender and age cutting across all these. Once these groups are constructed, a
society’s norms and beliefs then stratify and rank them (Lorber, 2000) to be superior or inferior thereby
introducing prejudices. Different groupings are not considered equal which sets the stage for the
practice of discrimination by one or more groups over others. Although this is rather an oversimplified
presentation, it nonetheless illustrates how the power structure (in the social, cultural, economic, and
political sense) is created and promoted. Power is then systematically maintained by subjugating groups
to continued prejudices, stereotypes, isolation and exclusion.
4
For more information on adolescent development and engagement please see Pittman, K. et al. 2003.
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The power structure often limits adolescent girls from meaningful participation in their societies and
cultural life. They are stereotyped as lacking capacity to know what is good for them, or make
contributions to their families and communities in ways other than what is defined as culturally/ socially
appropriate for them. In this view, they are regarded as being “dependent” and considered unable to
make decisions for themselves, undermining their confidence and self-efficacy, and ability for action.
In addition, the social and power structures underpin inequities that prevent adolescent girls from
accessing and utilizing opportunities and resources that encourage or depend on participation. Through
discriminatory practices these inequities become the constraints and barriers experienced by girls such
as being in the lower economic status, belonging to ethnic and religious minority groups, living in
remote rural areas, overcrowded slums or on the streets, etc. These barriers are complex, interrelated
and often mutually reinforcing. With each additional constraint an adolescent girl faces, a multiplier
effect takes place (Haberland et al, 2004 and Mauras, 2010). For example, at the outset adolescent girls
are discriminated and marginalized because of their gender and young age. And when a young 13 year
old from a poor, minority community who has not completed primary schooling is married into a
remote rural setting where she has no social support and is burdened with domestic work, she is further
marginalized and hardest to reach. Because of her early marriage, she will likely be expected to start
child bearing immediately where her and her infant’s survival is at stake and she is not likely to have
direct access to a health care facility, a provider or even basic health services and information. This
example serves to illustrate how “multiple inequalities intersect” (Kabeer, 2010) and violate a girl’s
survival, development, protection and participation rights.
Although there are multiple barriers depending on context and situation, this paper highlights some of
the most relevant to girls’ participation and commonly evidenced across cultures:
 Gender: From early on in their childhood girls are introduced to gender stereotypes and gender
related behaviour as discussed above in the gender socialization process (Perisic et al 2010). They
are often taught or pick-up from their families and socio-cultural environment what they perceive as
appropriate behaviours for being female. These include among others being passive, selfless,
sacrificing, submissive, etc. As they reach adolescence girls experience added layers of restrictions
and prohibitions in comparison to adolescent boys, for whom the time is one for greater expansion,
exploration, possibilities and opportunities (Levine et al, 2008).
 Age: Children are often associated with a lack of focus and experience, and are often expected to
defer to their elders in decision making. “In many cultures, children are expected to be silent in the
presence of adults. They are not encouraged to express their views or ask questions at home, in
school or in community gatherings, nor are they recognised as having the capacities to do so”
(Lansdown, 2011). For adolescent girls this usually means not having a say in their present or their
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future. For example, if and when they can go to school, who and when they will marry, whom they
can socialize with and if they can even go outside of their home etc.
 Lack of education: Education is fundamental to achieving social and economic independence.
Although enrollment rates of adolescent girls in primary school have increased, they are still less
likely than boys to stay in school (UN AGTF Briefing Kit, 2011). There are many reasons cited for girls
leaving school. The most common ones are running the household and other domestic work, taking
care of younger siblings and parents, early marriage, engagement with income generating work,
long and unsafe distances to reach school, preference to send sons who will provide support in the
future (as daughters will be married off to live with in-laws) (Greene et al 2010)5. In some cultures
the onset of menstruation means girls should no longer be in school (Sommer, 2010). And if they do,
they are less likely to continue onto secondary education (Barric et al, 2008). This despite growing
evidence on the importance of secondary education for girls. “Secondary education is singularly
effective in delaying the age at which a young woman first gives birth and it can enhance freedom of
movement and maternal health. It also strengthens women’s bargaining power within households
and is a crucial factor in providing opportunities for women’s economic and political participation”
(UNICEF SOWC, 2007). It also impacts the next and future generations with better health outcomes
for themselves, their children and their families. (UN AGTF Briefing Kit, 2011).
 Harmful social practices: Harmful social and/or traditional practices such as FGM/C, early and forced
marriage, dowry-related violence, and crimes in the name of honour are detrimental to girls’
psychological and physical development and limit their voice and participation in public life or for
decisions that affect them. Many of these harmful practices are often rooted in deeply entrenched
socio-cultural beliefs, norms and practices. Violence related to dowry and honour is a form of
gender based violence which can place girls in a cycle of continued domestic and physical abuse.
There is a growing body of evidence on the dangers and consequences of early marriage. Married
adolescent girls make up the majority of sexually active adolescent girls in the developing world.
And in most developing countries the majority of sexual activity for adolescent girls takes place
within the confines of marriage. Despite their large numbers and increased vulnerabilities this
“subpopulation has received neither programme and policy consideration in the adolescent sexual
and reproductive health field nor special attention from reproductive health and development
programmes for adult women”(Haberland et al, 2004). The younger the girl bride the more likely she
is to face the constraints and barriers discussed here. Early marriage leads to early pregnancy
putting both the mother and her baby at risk for survival. Childbirth is more difficult and dangerous
for an adolescent than an adult (UNICEF FFL, 2009). Early marriage also isolates the adolescent girl
from her immediate parental family and peers and takes her away from trusted social support
systems created in her childhood.
5
See also United Nations, UN Adolescent Girls Task Force, Briefing kit, 2011
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 Disabilities: Adolescent girls living with disabilities face incredible multiple challenges. For some
mobility is extremely difficult - they are dependent on family members, their prospects in marriage
and employment are slim, they are deprived of education, knowledge and awareness, access to
services as well as opportunities for participation in matters and events that affect them. In
addition, often these girls are socially ridiculed and ostracized which in turn affects their confidence
and self-esteem, and limits their expression and voice. (Barefoot College, 2009).
To overcome these constraints and break the cycle of discrimination, adolescent girls need skills leadership competencies- which enable them to identify their interests, define their needs, and find and
implement solutions to their problems within the context of their environment.
2.2.3 Understanding Leadership and Leadership Competencies
Research work on youth development (10-25 years) shows that what boys and girls learn and engage in
during their adolescent years will highly influence their adult years - both their personalities and actions
(Dobbs, 2011 and Gurrian, 2002). Developing their leadership competencies during adolescence
capitalizes on their development traits to explore, experiment and analyze their world. And it shifts the
focus from a problem-centered approach to a more positive holistic development process.
Available literature points to wide ranging conceptions and definitions of leadership (organizational and
business models); types of leadership such as transactional and transformational; leadership at different
levels such as personal leadership, group or peer leadership and community leadership (civic
engagement); leadership experience through discovery, connection and action (Girl Scout Institute,
2008); leadership development through awareness, interaction and mastery (Linden and Fertman,
1998); and a general approach to leadership as the ability to guide others. “Leadership” is the noun of
the word “lead” which means “to go before or with, to show the way” (Random House, 2011). For the
purposes of this paper, leadership competencies (as they relate to adolescent girls) can then be seen as
a set of core skills needed by adolescent girls to lead their lives. In other words, the set of basic
competencies that will collectively give them the ability to live and go (or show the way) forward in their
lives.
Current literature also points to a varying interpretation and application of what constitutes leadership
skills. Core principles and competencies have been identified and proposed by various experts and
organizations working in this field. Notable definitions and work in this area include those by CARE, Girl
Scouts, Youth Development Institute, the World Bank, and the International Baccalaureate. CARE’s
recent development of a girls’ leadership model which targets 10-14 year old adolescent girls, for
example, explains development of leadership competencies through educational settings and
attainment. Five competencies which help build girls’ agency are confidence, voice/ assertion, decision
making, organization, vision and ability to motivate others (Baric et al, 2008). The Girl Scouts
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
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Organization provides another example which focuses on girls’ leadership development through three
key aspects: girls discovering themselves, connecting with others, and taking action (Girl Scout Research
Institute, 2009). Underpinning girls’ activities in the organization is the strong relationship with adult
mentors. The Youth Development Institute6 in their Pathways to Leadership programme fosters
development outcomes through asset building such as social competencies of collaboration, listening,
respect, responsibility for one self; employment skills; and self-efficacy through community projects.
(Youth Development Institute, 2009).
Based on a review of the various approaches and skills recommended by experts and agencies, the
paper proposes the following set of core competencies that will help adolescent girls develop agency
and take control over their lives to lead a successful and fulfilling life. They contribute to the
development and strengthening of character7:
- Competence: having suitable skills in literacy, numeracy; ability to set and achieve personal goals
- Confidence: being conscious and trusting in one’s ability; this skill builds self-esteem and contributes
to perception of personal competence thereby leading to self-reliance
- Negotiation skills: communication skills with peers, family, teachers, mentors, and others in their
settings; encompasses problem-solving skills which require ability to negotiate for herself
- Resource management: ability to direct and control (manage) her resources (time, food, money, etcboth tangible and intangible); this skill is not just for multi-tasking or doing chores but in learning to
make time for self-reflection; management skill provides focus and self-discipline
- Collaboration: ability to work with and engage others- with peers and then family, community, and
government; this implies cooperation, respect and tolerance for others; building teams
The use of these leadership skills in combination will enable adolescent girls to give their life experiences
a voice (explore), express their opinions (self-analysis), and based on their evolving abilities take some
positive action (self-efficacy) which impacts their lives in the present.
2.2.4 Leadership Outcomes: Empowerment and Agency
Empowerment is a conception that is difficult to pin down for operational purposes. It can be defined in
various ways such as in relation to achieving equality, or to having the competency to identify problems
and solutions. It can apply to the individual level as well as to communities. Theorists and practitioners
of empowerment approaches have presented two versions of power (Labonte, 1990; Rappaport and
Hess, 1984; Wallerstein, 1992). Power from within is an internal, moral, spiritual source which can be
6
http://www.ydinstitute.org/index.html
more recently as the traits of mind and habit; capacity to be able to handle life. There has been recent debate among the experts that
character is not something that can be taught- rather there is an approach to building character which involves experiencing perseverance and
feeling passionate. For more information please see: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/18/magazine/what-if-the-secret-to-success-isfailure.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=what%20if%20the%20secret%20to%20success%20is%20failure&st=cse
7Defined
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constantly expanded as individuals empower themselves. The power over (as in exercising authority
over others) is based on domination of one or more groups over others. Empowerment, therefore,
means taking or transforming power relationships from a sense of powerlessness to one of control. For
the purpose of this paper, empowerment can be understood as an enabling process from which an
adolescent girl is able to gain “mastery over her life”8in the context of changing her environment and
power relationships to improve her life.
Gaining control over one’s life leads to having agency or the capacity, condition, or state of acting or of
exerting power (Merriam-Webster, 2011). The World Bank defines agency as the “ability to make
choices and take actions related to oneself, one’s situation in the household, and one’s situation in the
public sphere. Autonomy to influence one’s life is not only a key dimension of well-being; it also helps
determine outcomes such as the accumulation of endowments or the use of those endowments”
(World Bank, 2011). Endowments cover education, health, land and other assets such as financial
resources that individuals and families accumulate during their lifetime. Many of these, such as basic
education, according to the World Bank are amassed at early stages in life. This conception supports the
important relationship between building of agency and asset development at an early age to affect a
positive development outcome for girls.
Implicit in the definitions and concepts above is the acquisition of skills that enable the process of
empowerment and agency i.e. leadership competencies. Consistent also with these is the belief that
each adolescent girl has inherent competencies which can be strengthened through opportunities while
new competencies can also be learned. The forms and degrees to which competencies are developed
will be varied for each girl depending on her evolving capacity and context. Empowerment and agency
also implies that relationships (social and structural) between the adolescent girl and her family, social
network, community and governments are also strengthened.
Participation is the key engagement process through which leadership competencies are built.
Participatory strategies lie at the heart of a comprehensive approach to building leadership skills
through educational settings, peer networks, and livelihood trainings is essential. The next section
explores this further.
2.2.5 Linking Participation, Leadership, Empowerment and Agency
Participation, exercising leadership, empowerment and agency are interrelated. Both participation and
empowerment are dynamic processes – whereas participation centers on the active engagement of
adolescent girls and empowerment is the enablement of adolescent girls in gaining power over their
lives. Both vary in degrees and levels and are not very conducive to easy measurements. Yet they differ
8
This phrase is taken from Rappaport, 1984 and adapted to adolescent girls.
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
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when one process serves as a mechanism (participation) through which leadership competencies are
developed and the other (empowerment) through which leadership is exercised. This is a two-way
street where the inter-linkages are such that as more competencies are built, the greater the
empowerment of adolescent girls and as adolescent girls become more empowered, the greater
likelihood of their exercising leadership. While leadership can be exercised at a personal level, the
degree of empowerment can expand to a group level (through safe spaces, clubs) to exercise over
networks and peers and eventually to the community level through citizenship and civic engagement.
These “forms of leadership” represent the empowered adolescent girl with agency.
Participation as a right and as a strategy offers a mechanism for building girls’ leadership and is central
to the achievement of adolescent development outcomes. But it is not sufficient as a condition for
sustainable empowerment and agency. In addition to participation, multi-sectoral investments and
creating and supporting enabling environments are a key component in building sustainable leadership
in girls. Girl cannot become empowered without relevant education, without being healthy, protected
from violence and exploitation, and having sufficient social and economic assets. Investing across
sectors for adolescent girls implies that all the ways and means for their development and for their
empowerment are provided (da Silva, 2010). These include:
 Access to quality education, opportunities for training, and capacity building in all areas
 Access to health with appropriate and necessary information and services including sexual and
reproductive health, nutrition, HIV/AIDS prevention
 Freedom from exploitation and harmful practices including sexual abuse and harassment either at
home, at school or in any open space
 Safe spaces where they can connect with others and express themselves in socially acceptable ways
whether it is with peers, mentors, mothers, teachers, etc.
Finally, it has to be recognized that girls don’t develop in a vacuum and that living within nested layers of
family, community and society greatly influences their development outcomes, interactions between
and among these factors need to be addressed. Available literature that examines building adolescent
girls’ leadership indicates that catalysing change among girls at the individual level through participatory
approaches and methodologies is not sufficient unless accompanied by a supportive and protective
environment which is receptive to the voices, opinions and actions of girls. Changing social structures
and building supportive relationships are critical elements in promoting a sustainable, positive
development of young girls and in realizing their right to participation. For this, girls need support from
their families, communities and governments. Ways in which they can and have supported girls’
empowerment are summarized in Table 1.
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Table 1: Role of Environmental Agents in Supporting Girl’s Empowerment
Family
 support and encourage girls to utilize all opportunities
 facilitate their access to education, health and information services – such as taking them
to schools and health clinics, paying for their books, uniforms, providing adequate
nutrition, etc.
 include them in the family decision making process
 listen to what they have to say
 value their thoughts and opinions
 provide positive feedback to their choices
 serve as positive role models and provide guidance
 encourage independence
 build autonomy by giving them positive choice selections
 encourage fathers, brothers, uncles (men & boys) to help build girls’ self-esteem
 share in their household responsibilities
 respect their privacy
 treat girls and boys equally and through the same opportunities
Community
 foster and strengthen their social networks
 ensure girls go and stay in school
 provide them appropriate health information and services
 develop their social assets by providing them with safe spaces for sharing and exploring
themselves
 develop their economic assets such as through livelihoods training and changing
discriminative practices (heritage, etc.)
 engage male members of the community to support adolescent girls
 discourage and eliminate traditional beliefs and practices which disempower girls
 consult them on and provide them opportunities for participation in the design and
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
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implementation of community programme
National
Government
 revise policies to promote equitable access for girls to basic services (especially for the
marginalized) including confidential health care services, free primary and possibly
secondary education, ability for young mothers to return to school, regulating minimum
age of marriage etc
 ensure girls have access to the same opportunities as boys
 legislate and monitor measures to address gender based violence including special
affirmative actions to address historical inequalities develop capacity of service providers
to have an equity focused and non-discriminatory approach in their dealing with girls
 ensure laws already in place are being enforced
 consult girls on public policies, services and resource allocation
 increase efforts to include girls’ participation in planning, implementation and evaluation
of programmes related to their needs
To conclude, participatory strategies, along with holistic multi-sectoral investments and a supportive
environment are critical ingredients to building leadership competencies and achieving agency and
empowerment for the overall positive development of adolescent girls. Multi-sectoral programming
efforts need to consider action across levels – building individual capacities as well as catalysing societal
change - to support girls in breaking down and transcending barriers and gender-based discriminatory
norms which serve to isolate and exclude them, thereby, becoming leaders in their own right. Finally,
multi layered strategies need to be applied simultaneously to consider and address the multiple,
intersecting barriers and constraints that limit the participation of young girls, both individually and
structurally, in their own development.
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Part II of the paper examines how leadership competencies have been built and strengthened through
the interdisciplinary field of communication for development that utilizes participatory methodologies.
It presents the linkages between participation, leadership development, empowerment, and
communication for development. It explores the various approaches of C4D that have been relevant to
engaging adolescent girls and developing their leadership competencies. Case studies are presented and
recommendations made for C4D practitioners.
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3. THE ROLE OF C4D IN BUILDING LEADERSHIP OF ADOLESCENT GIRLS
3.1Participation, Empowerment, Girls’ Leadership and Communication
The processes and outcomes of empowering adolescent girls involve a change process which is
dependent on their engagement and interaction within and across levels- individually and with others thereby leading to changes in the social structure. Empowerment outcomes challenge and change
power dynamics that underpin constraints and barriers faced by girls. If true empowerment is to be
achieved, then engagement with adolescent girls in true dialogue needs to take place (Freire, 1973)9.
The role of communication, therefore, becomes one of catalyst in change. Communication is the natural
link which transforms the process of participation (engagement) into action (White, 2000). Participation
requires understanding girls’ communication patterns and behaviours and their utilization of media for
learning and knowledge sharing.
Communication can incubate ‘participative leadership’ by taking girls’ inputs into account and
encouraging their participation in societal and institutional networks thereby making them feel relevant
and committed to the decision making processes. Leadership development can also focus on IPC
(interpersonal communication) skills, working with groups and interacting with stakeholders. Higher
order skills like vocational ability, technical expertise for creating community and social media can help
in integration with socio-economic empowerment and civic participation. Capacity building through selfawareness, creativity and opportunities to experience and reflect can enable girls to transition into
leadership roles.
The overarching goal of communication then becomes apparent. For the 480 million adolescent girls
(UNICEF SOWC, 2011) living in developing countries, strategic communication efforts should seek to
empower them by making them visible while at the same time facilitating an enabling environment
which gives them due recognition of who they are. This will include:
1. Building self-confidence, self-esteem, and initiative of adolescent girls
2. Building new social and cultural identities of girls that are rooted in equality
3. Facilitating opportunities for girls to develop competencies and exercise leadership
4. Promoting a positive vision of young adolescent girls’ development - recognizing they have inherent
assets and building on these for their social and economic empowerment
5. Providing platforms and channels for girls’ voices
9Freire
proposed a dialogical process based on equality and mutual respect which enables all participants to engage in continuous reflection
and action.
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3.2 Communication for Development and the Human Rights Based Approach in UN system
Communication for Development (C4D) is both an academic discipline and a development programming
practice. The UN General Assembly Resolution 51/172 (February 1997) provides a working definition of
Communication for Development within the UN system. It stresses the need to support two-way
communication systems that enable dialogue and that allow communities to speak out, express their
aspirations and concerns and participate in the decisions that relate to their development”10. This
definition intrinsically links communication to empowerment and is applicable to adolescent girls. The
enabling of dialogue occurs through participation (i.e. interpersonal communication) and encompasses
all levels. It can be between: girls and their peers, girls and their families, girls and their communities,
and girls and their governments. Speaking out, expressing aspirations and concerns implies exercising of
leadership in which girls have reflected, analysed and articulated their views. Participation in decisions
affecting their lives shifts the power balance and gives them control,-thereby empowering them. While
this is dependent on the type of participation opportunities afforded to adolescent girls (i.e. are they
just consulted, or can they truly influence the process and outcomes, etc.), it nonetheless is an entry
point toward building leadership. The UN also views dialogical communication as being “consistent with
today’s paradigm of communication as an amplifier of voice, facilitator of participation, and means of
fostering social change”11 for adolescent girls. Above all, C4D functions as an enabler wherein
adolescent girls can assume leadership roles and acquire requisite skills through exposure to various
communication channels.
C4D has been recognized as a cross-cutting strategy within the UN system working along four main
areas (United Nations (b), 2011):
 Behaviour Change Communication (BCC)- using an appropriate and relevant mix of communication
channels to effect positive individual and social behavioural change
 Communication for Social Change (CfSC)- emphasizing participatory approaches through dialogue
processes and moving toward a positive and collective community action
 Communication for Advocacy- aimed at creating an enabling environment socially and politically
 Strengthening an enabling media and communication environment- building communication
capacities for a free and inclusive media at all levels
Utilization of these strategies is critical in the realization of human rights and achievement of the MDGs.
C4D approaches draw upon the key human rights principals of participation, empowerment, equality,
non-discrimination, and inclusion rooted in the rights to freedoms of information, communication and
participation to facilitate a process of change (WCCD, 2007). This process of change through
10
11
http://daccess-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/N97/765/67/PDF/N9776567.pdf?OpenElement
http://www.undg.org/index.cfm?P=1117
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communication for development is critical in addressing the “multiple intersecting inequalities” (Kabeer,
2010) which serve to isolate and exclude adolescent girls.
3.3 C4D Strategies and Programmes for Girls’ Leadership: Challenges and Opportunities
How have C4D strategies contributed to programming to build leadership among adolescent girls so far?
What have been the opportunities and challenges? Robust case studies and analytical examples of good
practice and innovations in C4D for developing adolescent girls’ leadership competencies are very
limited. Across UN agencies, programmes and projects for adolescent girls specifically have been hard to
find. This may in part be due to the differing scope and mandates of different UN agencies. Where some
data exists, adolescent girl programming is subsumed within programmes meant for a broader range of
population sub-groups (e.g. income generation programmes for ‘all youth’) or focused only in certain
sectoral areas (reproductive health or secondary education). In such a scenario adolescent girl
programmes are themselves under-resourced or narrowly defined, limiting the role and scope of C4D
work. Programmes and projects that have incorporated participation and empowerment have done so
within the framework of sectoral goals and objectives. Where focused, holistic programmes on
adolescent girls exist, the role and use of C4D principles and practice within the programme has been
ad-hoc and limited. Project write-ups vary considerably with some providing details of methodologies,
interventions and evaluations and others serving more as advocacy tools for working with adolescent
girls. Reporting on impact evaluation is also uneven with no clear measurement indicators, lack of
monitoring and evaluation frameworks, as well as unclear application of quantitative and qualitative
methods to measure empowerment outcomes. For example, general claims of empowerment have
been made based on participants’ statements from IDIs or FGDs.
Nonetheless, as the paper is interested in showcasing innovative approaches and examples of good
practice, evaluation outcomes as stated by the author have been accepted at face value and a few
compelling case examples have been identified, referenced and analysed. These initiatives have
incorporated and reported to varying degrees on C4D components and results ranging from a discrete
component within a larger programme dealing with issues related to adolescent girls, youth or gender,
to a comprehensive communication strategy(ies) on adolescent education, health and development.
Where no explicit C4D component have been specifically mentioned, elements deemed as C4D (e.g.
communication channels, methodologies, behavioural outcomes) have been teased out and highlighted.
These studies represent a small but useful sample of available research, published evaluation outcomes,
or work in progress and form an initial database of evidence and examples of good practice.
The projects are briefly summarized below in Table 2. Detailed descriptions have been provided in
Annex B.
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Table 2: Adolescent Girls’ Programmes with C4D Components: Case Examples Reviewed
Kishori Abhijan
The project aims to empower adolescent girls in rural Bangladesh through meaningful
(Adolescent Girls’
participation in decision making that affects their lives. It seeks to increase knowledge,
Adventure),
improve attitudes and enable social and behavioural change connected to child marriage,
Bangladesh
dowry, child rights, marriage and birth registrations and HIV/AIDS. The project also engages
girls’ mothers, fathers and community influentials in building a supportive environment.
Entre Amigas
Through a multi-sectoral approach this programme empowers adolescent girls by
(Between Girlfriends),
increasing their knowledge on reproductive health, fostering positive communication and
Nicaragua
relationships, and strengthening their connection with their community. Girls have been
engaged through peer sessions, workshops, puppet shows, dance groups, exchanges
between girls and networks, and through mothers and teachers.
Entre Faldas e
The goals of this project were to raise awareness among Brazilian adolescents and teachers
Cadermos (Lost Among
on the challenges pregnancy presents to adolescent girls and to reinforce their right to
Diapers and
continue their education. A participatory communication approach using small group
Notebooks), Brazil
discussions to facilitate debate and dialogue among peers on schooling and adolescent
motherhood duties was utilized. A key aspect of the programme was that students
produced their own communication tools.
Evidence Based Service
A multi-pronged approach was utilized to reach adolescent female sex workers (A-FSWs) in
Provision and
Ukraine. This included behavioural change and risk reduction interventions, adapting
Empowerment for
health and social services to their needs, making livelihood skills building services available,
Adolescent Female Sex
and advocating for changes in policies and legislation. One-on-one communication
Workers, Ukraine
between outreach workers and girls was key to building trust and keeping them engaged.
BiruhTesfa (Bright
Through group based mentoring provided in safe spaces, socially isolated girls living in
Future), Ethiopia
urban slums of Addis Ababa received training in literacy, numeracy, life skills, HIV/AIDS,
reproductive health and gender based violence.
Girls Gaining Ground,
This programme was initiated to reach and empower adolescent girls living in remote rural
India
areas of India to become self-confident, well-informed and responsible decision makers by
building their life skills and creating awareness on health and nutrition. Group settings
facilitated opportunities to share experiences, bond with each other and participate in
creative learning. Community projects served as outreach activities in which girls were able
to showcase their learning and skills.
Minga Peru: Listener
Adolescent girls and boys in the Peruvian Amazon participate in an integrated school based
as Producer, Peru
curriculum to gain knowledge, awareness and affect behavioural and social transformation
regarding issues of domestic violence and HIV/AIDS. Minga Peru’s Intercultural Radio
Educative Project incorporates the same themes in its broadcasts and encourages youth to
write in and contribute to the development of broadcast content.
Girl Power: Tea Garden
Adolescent girls clubs were established in Assam, India to encourage girls living on tea
Adolescent Clubs Grow
estates to go to and stay in school. The clubs provide spaces where girls receive life skills
12
Female Leaders , India
education and tutoring and serve as a platform for them to share their concerns and
express their feelings.
12
Detailed information was not available for this project. It has been included in the paper because of its approach to adapting to local realities
and accessing girls who otherwise would be isolated and unreachable. Information was accessed at: www.unicef.org/india/reallives_5426.htm
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
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3.3.1 What do these Case Examples tell us?
Each of these programmes highlighted by their respective case studies reflect the integration and
application of multi-level C4D strategies and tools in developing individual skills and enhancing agency of
adolescent girls as well as engaging main stakeholders to create and strengthen an enabling
environment in support of adolescent girls’ development. The programmes illustrate how
communication has been used, as a tool and as a process to develop skills, and as a right in itself, for
voice and expression by the girls and their communities. In their analysis, several key features that have
strengthened and/or challenged the programmes have emerged as common across the case studies.
They include:
 A multi-sectoral and holistic programme approach that effectively integrates C4D and works at all
levels has been essential in building sustainable leadership of adolescent girls. All of the
programmes have shared a multi-sectoral and multi-level holistic approach to their C4D components
for adolescent girls’ development. For example, the A-FSW empowerment Project in Ukraine utilized
several C4D strategies at various levels to deliver community services to this group. This including
interpersonal communication where girls were recruited by outreach workers to drop-in centres;
community mobilization through which drop-in centers served as a safe space for counseling and
referrals to government services; advocacy by way of which outreach workers engaged various
government services across sectors such as health and legal services to work with the girls and revise
the national law on HIV testing; and communication for social change where A-FSWs were integrated
into adult-oriented HIV prevention and harm reduction services and the adult health care services
were strengthened to become friendlier toward most at risk adolescents. This holistic approach
contributed to an increase in satisfaction and uptake of services, building confidence and self-efficacy
of girls. Eighty-four percent of girls said they would accompany others to the health services
indicating empowerment outcomes. Communication channels to facilitate this work included direct
contact/ communication with outreach worker, information leaflets and book of services, peer
education, individual and group counseling, and use of mobile phones. The Girls Gaining Ground
project in India also employed a similar approach where girls were provided life skills education as
well as information about health, nutrition and hygiene through peer education and peer networks
contributing to personal changes in KAP. Participatory communication and cultural expression were
woven into the programme through which girls participated in creative learning such as painting and
creating songs. The programme included social network development through which girls met in safe
spaces to participate in activities that facilitated group cohesiveness. Intergenerational dialogue and
learning by doing, outreach activities helped girls address community issues through projects and
engagement with village elders. Through these interventions they were able to build knowledge, life
skills, and leadership competencies- contributing to some level of empowerment. The Entre Amigas
programme, for example, worked with young girls in small group settings through peer training which
allowed for interaction and sharing of ideas, discussions and finding collective solutions to their
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
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issues/ situations. This was reinforced through the reach of the existing mass media “edutainment”
programme, Sexto Sentido. Local level mobilisation occurred in the form of exchanges between girls,
mothers and their teachers. Minga Peru’s approach was similar in that it worked with youth in group
sessions during school and then reinforced messaging through the on-air radio programme,
Bienvenida Salud. A detailed summary of findings is provided in Annex C.
 Carrying out C4D research was the first step towards designing the most relevant programmes/
interventions for building leadership competencies of adolescent girls. The Kishori Abhijan project
for instance utilized C4D situation analysis tools such as baseline surveys and behavioural monitoring
activities to determine areas where concerted efforts on delay of marriage, dowry and lowering
school drop-out rates were needed. The research revealed that economic incentives played an
important role in keeping poor adolescents -especially girls- in school and subsequently delaying their
marriage. As a result, the programme focused on the C4D approach of increasing awareness and
knowledge on the legal age of marriage and constraints of dowry. Adolescent girls’ communication
and negotiation skills were improved by participating in life skills training. Through community
mobilization, participation and intergenerational dialogue, parents’ and communities’ views on child
marriage also changed. Similarly, the Entre Amigas programme in Nicaragua conducted formative
research with C4D tools (baseline assessments) to document girls’ perspectives, communication
patterns, knowledge of sexual and reproductive health as well as those of their parents and teachers.
The project used findings from its baseline research coupled with information/ feedback received
from girls’ participation in peer network activities to introduce a 13 year old character on the widely
viewed soap opera Sexto Sentido developed by an organization called Puntos de Encuentro. Through
the research, the character provided insights into the real issues faced by girls as they navigate
adolescence.
 C4D strategies have played a critical role in identifying and recruiting marginalized and socially
excluded adolescent girls. A-FSWs in Ukraine were identified through a study to be part of the Most
At Risk Adolescent (MARA) population. The group being reached by the programme comprises 20%
of all FSWs in Ukraine. Through social and community mobilization efforts outreach workers were
trained to identify, recruit and work with these girls. Although the project was in a pilot phase, the
recruitment strategy of identifying and reaching the most marginalized girls was deemed a great
success. Outreach workers followed-up with each girl through the use of mobile phones. Technology,
in this instance, was used as an enabler in the C4D process. This type of one-on-one communication
helped build trust and ensure continued participation in the programme. Contact information for the
girls was available only to the workers and so access to the girls was kept restricted to ensure
confidentiality and respect for privacy. The support they received from the outreach workers helped
build their confidence and develop positive attitudes and motivation in information and service
seeking behavior- thereby contributing to self-efficacy. The Biruh Tesfa project in Ethiopia sought to
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actively recruit the socially marginalized adolescent girls living in urban slums. These girls often are
domestic workers, orphans or migrants from rural areas. Because of their social isolation due to long
working hours, low or non-existent pay, exposure to sexual abuse and violence, these girls do not get
to participate in or benefit from mainstream programmes. Through community mobilization of
respected opinion leaders, this project trained local female residents as mentors. The mentors then
went door to door in the slum areas identifying and recruiting girls into the programme through
negotiation and dialogue engagement, and were responsible for their continued follow-up. Often,
repeated contacts and extensive negotiation were necessary with families and employers to let the
girls receive basic education, life skills and social support. By participating in group based mentoring
it was found that the girls were significantly more likely to have undergone voluntary counseling and
testing for HIV, thereby exercising critical decision making with regard to such a difficult topic. They
were enabled to take this decision with the support from their mentors.
 Engaging adolescent girls through participatory communication has been a core approach in
building their leadership competencies and agency. Entre Amigas in Nicaragua has participatory
communication at its central core where peer facilitators are involved in all aspects of the project
design and assessment, curriculum development, entertainment script writing and interactions with
mother and teacher groups. The Lost Among Diapers and Notebooks programme in Brazil engaged
adolescents to facilitate debate and dialogue on schooling and adolescent motherhood. Photo stories
used in the discussions were created by a group of adolescent boys and girls from low income
communities in urban centers. Adolescent girls in the programme produced their own
communication tools and through each step of media production they gained skills and were able to
reflect on their own situations regarding adolescent pregnancy. Participatory communication became
a methodology for active learning.
 C4D strategies have been essential to build an enabling environment. The Kishori Abhijan project
engaged mothers, fathers, teachers, community and religious leaders to build a supportive
environment for adolescent girls’ development while simultaneously working with girls as well. This
resulted in improved communication within families which allowed girls to participate in clubs and
negotiate their own mobility. As a result of participating in the programme mothers were more
willing to listen to their daughters. This affected a positive change in relationships and an overall
positive attitude towards girls’ empowerment. Similarly, Entre Amigas worked with girls in peer and
education sessions to build leadership competencies while also separately engaging them, their
mothers and teachers in interactive group settings through interpersonal and intergenerational
communication. Ninety-one percent of girls who participated in group sessions with friends and in
group sessions with mothers were found likely to be more assertive. An impact evaluation of Puntos
de Encuentro’s communication programme Sexto Sentido, that was informed by Entre Amigas, stated
that “individual behaviours are not isolated from the environment in which people live, but rather
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
27
are related to the social contexts and processes” (Solorzano et al, 2008). In Ukraine, advocacy work
resulted in revisions to the national AIDS Law approving HIV testing for 14-18 year olds without
parental consent and inclusion of A-FSWs in the National AIDS Programme and State Social Services.
 Engaging men and boys has been an important element in positive development of girls. The wider
literature review revealed that many of the programmes on adolescents worked with both boys and
girls as part of a larger youth participation and education effort. For programmes and projects that
aimed to reach 10-19 year old girls specifically, there was little evidence of the programme actively
engaging men and boys towards the positive development and empowerment of adolescent girls.
Evaluations from these programmes also lacked a gender analysis of the impact on boys. For the
samples of good practice presented above, however, there have been deliberate strategies to reach
and enhance interaction between girls and boys. Minga Peru’s Intercultural Radio Educative Project
for instance, engaged both adolescent girls and boys in school settings to increase awareness and
affect social and behavioural change regarding domestic violence and HIV/AIDS. Through student
centered classroom dialogues, both groups were able to debate and discuss these issues. Boys also
became an increasing audience segment of the Bienvenida Salud radio programme and started to
write in to the programme with issues and suggestions. Although the programme’s evaluation was
not strong in the gender analysis, qualitative data did reveal that men were becoming sensitized to
domestic violence. The Lost Among Diapers and Notebooks project also actively worked with both
boys and girls to promote debate and discussion on adolescent pregnancy- which obviously has a
greater and more immediate impact on girls. The approach on collectively working together on a
solution to get adolescent mothers back in school served to raise awareness among boys and
sensitize them to issues faced by pregnant adolescent girls. Similarly boys also participated in the
Entre Amigas programme and were engaged as active participants in understanding and finding
solutions to issues related to adolescent pregnancy. Active learning methods promoted a horizontal
exchange of information and ideas between both girls and boys.
 Phasing the programme into focused, measurable and achievable stages and interventions has
shown impact- especially in engaging marginalized and hard to reach girls. Pilot studies and final
reports from the completed projects discussed above have shown considerable reach in participation
of adolescent girls through phased approaches. In some cases there has been impact in reducing long
held traditions of harmful practices through shorter-term efforts focused on reaching large numbers
of girls and developing their agency. In Ukraine, the number of A-FSWs in the project was doubled
within a short period of time even though initial efforts focused on reaching fewer numbers. The
BiruhTesfa project in Ethiopia benefitted about 17,000 adolescent girls by December 2009- of which
approximately 5,525 were 10-14 year old girls. The project is now being scaled up to 12 other cities in
Ethiopia (Erulkar et al 2011). In another example not included in Table 2, the UNFPA/ UNICEF Joint
Programme on the accelerated abandonment of FGM/C in Ethiopia’s Afar region promoted social
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
28
change and has shown impact step-by-step approach in reaching out to circumscribers and intermarrying communities. “More than 200 circumcisers have publicly vowed to stop the practice. Two of
the six districts have formally announced the abandonment of FGM/C. More than 4,000 girls have so
far been saved from FGM/C in the six districts- an unprecedented success in the history of Afar
region” (UN AGTF, 2011). In Bangladesh, the Kishori Abhijan programme project was initially piloted
in 2001 and brought to scale in 2006 to enroll more than 600,000 adolescents including mainly girls
and some boys as well.
 Interventions that were grounded in C4D principles, methods and tools to increase communication
and interaction between service providers (be they mentors, teachers or health care professionals)
and adolescent girls, have shown better impact. The projects which showed better impact utilized
interpersonal, group and community dialogues. The more girls talked, the more empowered they
felt. This process was initiated by dialogue followed by continued exchanges which lead to
interactions contributing to information seeking behavior, building trust with mentors and providers,
improving negotiation skills, competence in formulating speech, etc. Communication between girls
and their providers is essential because it also addresses a power balance and works towards
establishing a positive relationship. Once the programme intervention is completed the continued
dialogical exchange contributes to sustained leadership competencies and social change. Outreach
activities such as those in the Girls Gaining Ground project in India provided the girls with
opportunities to engage with community members and showcase what they had learned. Qualitative
data showed improved self-confidence and ability to negotiate on issues such as mobility, delay in
marriage, better nutrition and seeking of health care services. As a direct result of one-on-one
interaction/ communication with outreach workers, A-FSWs in Ukraine not only showed an increase
in demand for services but an increase in service uptake as well.
 The use of C4D methodologies has created opportunities for orienting the programmes to the
realities of the local culture and environment. The BiruhTesfa project in Ethiopia utilized a door to
door strategy to identify girls for participation in the programme. They conducted girls’ groups
meetings at a time when it was convenient for them and engaged female mentors who were
respectable members and residents of the same community as the girls (Erulkar et al, 2011). In
Assam, India, the adolescent girls’ leadership programme established girls’ clubs in tea estates to
reach out to families living on these estates. These families are usually marginalized and excluded
from most development programmes. Outreach activities focused on the community to encourage
the tea garden’s adolescent girls to go and to stay in school. Club members tutored drop-out girls,
provide life skills learning such as proper hygiene during menstruation, HIV protection, delay of
marriage (girls on the tea gardens have been traditionally married as young as 13), and anemia
treatment (which affects many young women on the plantations).
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
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In summary, this sample of case studies in many ways operationalizes the girls’ leadership framework
presented earlier. The programmes they highlight promote girls’ participation as a means to
empowerment. Recognizing that participation alone is not sufficient for girls’ leadership development,
these programmes illustrate how C4D plays a strategic role in increasing knowledge and strengthening
resolve of key stakeholders in girls’ environment to support behavioural and social change. The wider
literature review and consultations with experts however also reveals that effective utilization of C4D
strategies to build girl’s leadership continues to be a challenge for a number of reasons. These include:
lack of understanding the role of C4D in building girls’ leadership skills; lack of systematic integration of
C4D planning, implementation, and evaluation in adolescent girls’ programmes; C4D seen as an add-on
activity that focuses primarily on IEC materials production or mass media; lack of resources including
C4D expertise in adolescent girls or financial limitations in carrying out social and behavioural research
(e.g. formative, KAP, baseline, etc.). As a result, limited investments are made into sound
communication research and baseline data; or single approach communication interventions are utilized
(i.e. mass media); or even that communication strategies focus solely on building individual skills and
capacities of girls without considering and contributing to the building of an enabling environment are
designed and implemented. In addition, while the wider search for case studies revealed a growing
number of projects focusing on young adolescent girls, few have been rigorously evaluated, or in cases
where evaluations do exist they are scarce, incomplete or non-existent with relation to measuring
communication indicators. In some cases, the projects are more recent and so are not ready for an
evaluation.
Ultimately empowerment strategies for building girls’ leadership will require long term investments in
comprehensive behavior and social change efforts that focus not only on building individual capacities
but also resource and community mobilization, and advocacy work resulting in improved access to
health information and services, educational and training opportunities, and safe spaces that enable
girls’ participation. The next section focuses on key recommendations and suggestions to strengthen
C4D initiatives within programmes aimed at the development, participation and empowerment of
adolescent girls.
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4. STRENGTHENING C4D EFFORTS TO BUILD LEADERSHIP OF ADOLESCENT GIRLS
For at least the UN agencies who have signed the Joint Statement on “Accelerating Efforts to Advance
the Rights of Adolescent Girls” operational efforts have intensified in this area. While the mandate of
each agency may be different, efforts are focusing on expanding and enhancing the scope of and
collaboration on programmes and activities. Because the desk research and consultations with experts
reveals that in general, the role and strategic use of C4D principles and practice within adolescent girls’
programmes has been limited, the XIIth UNRT presents a unique opportunity to bring attention to this
issue and deliberate on ways forward. In the meanwhile, C4D itself has evolved and is steadily being
viewed as an important cross cutting area across the UN. The use of participatory methods and inclusive
approaches are becoming essential to a broad range of sectoral projects within which C4D is facilitating
linkages, building knowledge and awareness, enhancing community capacities, addressing deep rooted
behaviours and practices, facilitating a shift in attitudes and social norms, and building community
confidence and efficacy (UN C4D, 2011). However challenges as highlighted in the previous section
remain. Despite the growing attention, “levels of activity, methodologies, resources and the position of
C4D within the organizations vary widely. To some degree, these variations can again be attributed to
the different institutional mandates with which the various organizations have been entrusted” (United
Nations (b), 2011).
In order to realize the power and potential of C4D to building adolescent girls’ leadership, adequate
attention to and investments in C4D are critical because communication enables sustained social and
behavioural change for the positive development of adolescent girls and creates linkages across sectors
and between levels of target populations. Presented below are specific recommendations and
suggestions for the effective integration, design, implementation and evaluation of the C4D component
of adolescent girls’ programmes.
 Plan for parallel and convergent tracks of building girls’ leadership and creating an enabling/
supportive environment through communication. The discussion on participation, empowerment,
agency and leadership development in Section 2 shows that leadership skills and capacities of girls
must be developed at the individual level while simultaneously their immediate environment needs
to be made receptive and supportive to their voices, opinions and actions. This was also borne out by
results from the sample of good practice programmes presented. The programmes reviewed were
designed to work across levels. They provided individual girls with knowledge and life skills on health,
nutrition, education and vulnerability to violence in formal and non-formal settings through one-onone outreach efforts, counseling, peer education, information about rights and access points etc.
They also worked with networks of adults including mothers, family members, teachers, community
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
31
leaders and health personnel in sensitizing them to the girls’ situations. This led to creation of
communication networks that girls could access and contribute to. At a higher level, policy level
changes were made possible with consistent and sustained communication and advocacy. Working
across levels is essential for sustained change and impact and contributes to the positive
development of adolescent girls. Programmes on adolescent girls need to enable girls’ participation
whether through policy formulation or reform, and at community level, with continued focus on
individual confidence enhancement, skills development and knowledge growth. Leadership traits like
decision making, situation analysis and peer/community mobilization should be developed and
incubated through C4D. How can this be done? The next few points seek to elaborate on this further.
 Ground communication strategies and interventions in proven socio-behavioural theories and
models. As highlighted before C4D is both an academic discipline and area of practice. Strategies and
interventions need to be grounded in the rich base of multi-disciplinary theories and models from the
psychological and social sciences that this field draws upon. Theories and models can help
programmers and communication specialists in understanding and categorizing social phenomena.
They can provide frameworks and ways to organize data and insights related to individuals, their
communities and societies specifically the ways they think, feel, act and function while negotiating
their environments. They allow practitioners to analyse practices, beliefs, values and norms and
predict courses of action that may in whole or some part address behavioral and social issues, in tried
and tested ways. Depending on the current discourse and paradigm, over the years, communication
specialists have relied upon a wide range of theories and models such as Diffusion of Innovations,
Stages of Behaviour Change, Health Beliefs Model and more recently Social Norms Theory to
develop, implement and evaluate their interventions across programme sectors. Specialists have also
Box 1: Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory
used a range of operational
planning tools such as UNICEF’s
ACADA, JHU-CCP’s SCOPE, and
WHO/NYU’s COMBI to develop C4D
strategies (UNICEF, 2010). While
reinforcing the relevance and
usefulness of each of these
approaches, this paper would like
to focus on and propose the Social
Ecological Model (SEM) linked to
the “bioecological systems
theory”13as an overarching
framework that can be well applied
13
Paquette &Ryan, Date?
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
32
to organizing C4D components of girls’ leadership programmes. Box 114 provides a visualization of
this framework. The application of this framework implies that the adolescent girl and the multiple
influences in her life can be organized as ‘levels’ or ‘layers’ in nested systems. The girl is in the
innermost circle where her interaction with her environmental forces (depicted as bi-directional) will
shape her development. The four layers and factors within each are:
1. Microsystem-girls in direct contact with family, peers, school
2. Mesosystem- which is two microsystems in interaction (i.e. interactions between family and
teachers)
3. Exosystem- external environments such as community, health and schooling systems
4. Macrosystem-the larger socio-cultural and political context (including national governments)
responsible for norms, policies, laws etc that regulate and shape collective thinking and action
This framework allows programmers and communication specialists to analyse barriers and
constraints across and within the levels. More importantly to design holistic and comprehensive
interventions that encapsulate and interlink all levels of action necessary to address underlying
immediate, structural and systemic issues as presented in Section 2 of this paper, that act as
‘multiple intersecting inequalities’ impacting the development of girls. Applying the framework also
emphasizes the inter-dependence of interventions and the need for synchronized, synergistic action.
Communication in this framework is both the catalyst and thread tying these levels of action
together. In keeping the adolescent girl as the primary focus (within the nested microsystem) of
interventions, C4D approaches will need to work across the other levels (i.e. meso, exo, macro) to
support girls. Table3 below builds on Table 1 presented earlier in the paper by offering C4D
approaches, interventions and tools relevant to each societal layer. The table is meant to be
illustrative, not exhaustive. The same approaches can overlap between the levels (bidirectional).
Table 3: C4D Approaches, Interventions & Tools to Reach out to and Engage Environmental agents
Level
Family
(micro +
mesosystem)
14
Role
 support and encourage girls
to utilize all opportunities
 facilitate their access to
education, health and
information services – such
as taking them to schools
and health clinics, paying for
their books, uniforms,
providing adequate
nutrition, etc.
 include them in the family
decision making process
 listen to what they have to
C4D Approaches, Interventions and Tools
 Encourage recording and observation of practices that may
not be inclusive and facilitate discussions at the family level or
in sub-units (i.e. like among daughters-mothers, sons-mothers,
daughters-fathers) on alternatives
 Facilitate a dialogue on choices in the areas of health, nutrition
etc. and their effect
 Align KAP with concurrent programmes (aimed at community)
through IDI, FGD and surveys
 Discuss and introduce projects/activities like budget and
nutrition plans for the entire family
 Encourage self-identification of positive/leadership
competencies by the girls and their value assessment through
personal counseling
http://pt3.nl.edu/paquetteryanwebquest.pdf
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
33









Community
(meso +
exosystem)








say
value their thoughts and
opinions
provide positive feedback to
their choices
serve as positive role
models & provide guidance
encourage independence
build autonomy by giving
them positive choice
selections
encourage fathers,
brothers, uncles (men &
boys) to help build girls’
self-esteem
share in their household
responsibilities
respect their privacy
treat girls and boys equally
and through the same
opportunities
foster and strengthen their
social networks
ensure girls go and stay in
school
provide them appropriate
health information and
services
develop their social assets
by providing them with safe
spaces for sharing and
exploring themselves
develop their economic
assets
engage male members of
the community to support
adolescent girls
discourage and eliminate
traditional beliefs and
practices which disempower girls
consult them on and
provide them opportunities
for participation in the
design and implementation
of community programme
 Group (family level) counseling to identify and map
aspirations. Desirable vocational skills may also be noted for
future training programmes
 Identify and discuss barriers and impact of social norms on
personal decisions in order to address them at the community
level
 Explore and expand concepts of who is to learn, how and
what? This is to ensure equal participation of girls and boys
and also leads to sustainable change
 Encourage acceptance of media literacy and advocacy by girls
 Map existing networks of support and information for
adolescent girls and encourage greater participation through
FGDs and local media
 Critical incident analysis i.e. examine exercising of leadership
or consequences of lack of agency within the local
environment through interviews and direct counseling to
encourage self-reflection and initiative
 Self-development kits for use by girls such as materials on
safety, photo essays, case studies/stories for performance,
developing slogans or communication media
 Facilitate information access from multiple sourcesinstitutional, governmental, personal
 Create awareness about alternatives through platforms for
dialogue and discussions between peers, NGOS, authorities
and decision makers
 Tackle stigma against participation of adolescent girls by
engaging voices from community role models and by making
them educators, facilitators and evaluators
 Create opportunities for girls’ participation and expression
through traditional or local media: songs, paintings, theatre,
poetry (oral traditions)
 Share knowledge and experience about the positive benefits
of communal spaces for girls
 Self-development kits for use such as materials on safety,
photo essays, case studies/stories for performance,
developing slogans or communication media,
 Encourage links between girls with common interests who
may not be in contact
 Use of internet, telephony etc. to extend and reinforce
existing networks
 Formal training in participatory programmes like radio
transmission, video module development and primer design
 Social network analysis to see how information is circulating
amongst the girls through participant observation
 Develop and manage programme schedules & records which
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
34
National
Govt.
(macrosystem)
 revise policies to promote
equitable access for girls to
basic services (especially for
the marginalized)
 ensure girls have access to
the same opportunities as
boys
 legislate and monitor
measures to address gender
based violence including
special affirmative action to
address historical
inequalities and develop
capacity of service providers
 ensure laws already in place
are being enforced
 consult girls on public
policies, services and
resource allocation
 increase efforts to include
girls’ participation in
programmes related to their
needs








are accessible to the community (i.e. community information
boards)
Media and communication policies/directives centered on
policy changes that affect girls’ development
Open feedback channels which are accessible to girls
Communication interventions based on social and cultural
contexts as opposed to only macro-orientations
Improved media distribution and access systems coupled with
intensive monitoring and evaluation
Focus on hardware, transmission and training of media
practitioners
Providing marginalized girls access to relevant media and viceversa
Promoting scholarships/fund allocation for adolescent girls to
assist in and learn from existing programmes and/or create
and customize programmes for their peers
Mandating inclusive and gender sensitive curricula in schools
 Ensure that C4D should be a part of any adolescent girls’ intervention/ programme right from the
start, at the research and planning stage. C4D components within programme strategies work to
catalyse behavior and social change. In order to achieve meaningful impact, they need to be fully
integrated into the programme cycle beginning with the research and planning stage. Sociobehavioural and communication research through the use of a wide variety of qualitative and
quantitative methodologies and data collection techniques is essential in exploring and analysing the
individual girl and her relationships with the various levels/ layers of her environment. This analysis
helps identify key stakeholders, how they relate to each other, their communication channels and
appropriate strategies in reaching them. It also contributes towards understanding the immediate
and underlying barriers and constraints that may be linked to social norms, policies and systemic
practices that limit girls’ participation and empowerment and that which programme interventions
can address. Studying social-behavioural barriers and constraints through communication research
also ensures that interventions are cognizant of and tailored to local cultural realities. The research
process begins with a C4D situation analysis along the following components (UNICEF, 2009):
(i) Issue and Programme Analysis- This requires mapping the girls’ situation and defining problems
and issues affecting their development to determine which aspects can be addressed by C4D
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
35
strategies. This research would provide information on their demographics, KAP, perceptions,
health, nutrition, and education status among others which would help define the problem and
its causes. Understanding issues from the perspective of adolescent girl’s themselves through
the use of participatory research methods, is also of critical importance here. The final analysis
would then inform the programme’s response to the problems affecting girls and provide an
entry point for integrating relevant C4D strategies.
(ii) Communication Environment Analysis- This analysis will yield information on the girls’ broader
environment in which communication takes place across and between the various levels/ layers.
It will examine the social, cultural, political and economic factors affecting girls. This research
analysis should start with identification of any existing communication strategies that involve or
apply to issues relevant to adolescent girls. How does the socio-political system affect
communication channels for girls, the flow of information to them and their access to social
communication networks? Are there structural constraints or opportunities that influence flow
or exchange of information to adolescent girls?
(iii) Participant Analysis- The participant analysis provides the social context surrounding girls’
development. As highlighted before, girls are part of families, schools, communities and
societies and understanding how each of these influence and impact girls and each other is
critical in achieving positive outcomes for girls. This analysis will help identify the relevant
participants, besides individual girls, who need to be engaged in the programme. It is important
to explore the bidirectional communication patterns between girls and their family members
(particularly males) and communities (teachers, health care providers). Who in their family
influences them most? Do they have a role model in the community? What types of
responsibilities do they have? Is there anyone to help them? What resources are available to
families and communities that could facilitate building girls’ social assets? Do girls have friends/
peers and social networks, access to safe spaces? Do communities engage girls in participation?
To what extent is girls’ participation encouraged or practiced in the community?
(iv) Behaviour Analysis- Results from KAP and other studies will help identify the political, economic
and socio-cultural barriers and constraints faced by participants in the programme. It is
important to map out their current perceptions, beliefs, attitudes, and behaviours that hinder
the positive development of girls. This information can help unpack the barriers through
appropriate message development, choice of communication channel and development of
behavioural monitoring indicators. Questions for this analysis would include looking at existing
mechanisms which prevent or promote practicing positive behaviours by participants? What
traditional/ cultural practices benefit girls that can be promoted in the communication
intervention? What are the recommended behaviours for each participant group? What are the
benefits of adopting this behavior to each group?
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
36
(v) Communication Channel Analysis- This analysis is key to determining the appropriate mix of
communication channels that can be accessed by the participants (girls, mothers, fathers,
brothers, mentors, teachers, service providers, community leaders, etc.) What information/
communication sources have credibility with the participants? What are girls’ communication
channels of choice? How do they connect with others? What opportunities exist for them to
engage in dialogues with others and in group settings? How does information flow across social
networks within which girls are embedded? Are there mechanisms for girls to voice their
concerns and opinions in community activities/ programmes or across these social networks?
What existing opportunities do they use for cultural expression? Do they have access to
community media, TV, radio, mobile phone, technologies?
Results from C4D research will provide essential evidence on the types and degrees of barriers and
constraints - the multiple intersecting inequalities - faced by girls. This will help inform not only the
communication strategy but the larger programme strategy for empowering adolescent girls.
 Involve and engage men and boys, as a special focus, to affect positive development of girls. As
noted before, while there is not enough emphasis and evidence on the role and impact of boys and
men in adolescent girls’ programmes, there is considerable agreement on the rationale of their
involvement in girls’ positive development. Recent work by CARE on education and girls’ leadership,
and by ICRW and Instituto Promundo on achieving gender equality and equity in health highlight the
critical role that men and boys play as gatekeepers in girls’, and later on, in women’s lives. Since men
have traditionally held positions of power and influence at all levels, it is essential to engage them in
creating an enabling environment that will support girls’ practice of agency (Baric and Cronin, 2010
and ICRW and Instituto Promundo, 2007). Early adolescence is the period in which boys and girls
learn about themselves, their changing bodies and identities, and the influence of social expectations
and pressures. As it is the “window of opportunity” in teaching and empowering girls, it is also a
“window of opportunity” and an entry point, to teach young boys about responsible behaviours and
how they can transform their families and societies to become more equitable. Meaningful and
successful engagement of boys means challenging the social norms around masculinity and working
with them in partnership for social change to eliminate gender inequality. In a study conducted by
CARE (Barin and Cronin, 2010), three insights were pointed out which should serve as the basis for
adolescent girls’ programmes to engage boys: (in quotes)
1. Understanding the complexities of male-female relations, and acknowledging how these contain
binding as well as divisive forces, which people value in ways our stereotyped approaches do not
allow for;
2. Taking men seriously as central players in gender transformation, and investing time is facilitating
their opening to more gender equitable identities and competencies; and
3. Creating valuable entry points and safe staging grounds for men and women to grow into change.
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
37
 Utilize an appropriate mix of C4D methodologies and tools. The social-ecological model, as
mentioned above, provides a basis for framing and integrating levels of influence on the adolescent
girl. C4D research and analysis provides an accurate map of the intersections and inter-linkages
among these layers of influence as relevant to a particular culture. Together they allow programmers
and communication specialists to determine best routes of action. Evidence in other sectoral areas
such as health and nutrition point out that programmes that have utilized a combination of
integrated communication approaches, methods and tools to reach these layers and address specific
barriers and constraints have shown better impact. The case examples discussed in Section 2, have all
combined multiple elements of advocacy, interpersonal communication, social and behavioural
change communication and social mobilisation. For instance, advocacy which is needed at
community level to get buy-in from the girls’ surroundings—from their immediate family to the
extended community can facilitate change/ revisions in existing services, policies and laws. The use
of mixed methodologies is also relevant for evaluation and monitoring. Because leadership is a
dynamic trait both qualitative and quantitative indicators need to be put in to place. While the case
studies provide good examples of utilizing combined multiple C4D strategies further research is
needed to determine how the use of various communication approaches and strategies in the
different stages of the programmes/ interventions impacts sustainability.
 Orient C4D strategies to the realities of the local culture and environment. Because participation in
a programme may imply an opportunity cost especially if some or many of the girls are engaged in
productive activity, recruitment strategies that seek to increase participation of adolescent girls
should be carefully designed and communicated according to the sensitivities of the family and
community. For example, how much free time do the girls have and how far do they have to go to
participate in the programme. Leadership activities should improve a girl’s social status within the
family/ community and should take place in the community where she lives (so as not to compromise
her socially). Adapting to local realities bears resource implications for C4D when addressing the
diversity of the adolescent girl population. And, because adolescent girls are not a homogeneous
group, C4D interventions must be tailored to meet their individual needs and circumstances
including age, language, religion, socio-economic status, marital status, geographical/ spatial
location, domestic arrangement, etc. In large scale programmes, separate sets of materials need to
be configured to different sub-populations of girls’ and their characteristics and situation (i.e.
language, religion, etc.). And in smaller projects where interventions are targeting specific subpopulations of adolescent girls, several projects may need to be implemented concurrently- so no
one group of adolescent girls is excluded. In either case, C4D needs to be resourced appropriately in
terms of human and financial resources.
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
38
 Invest in measuring impact. Because communication interventions aim for long term sustainable
change, their impact evaluations often take time and require sustained effort with sustained
resources. Although there is an increased interest in evaluation of communication indicators (United
Nations, 2009), especially in relation to measuring participation and empowerment, high quality
research evaluation is still lacking. As discussed earlier in the paper, participation and empowerment
are processes for which operational and measurement definitions have been challenging. In her
comparative analysis of diffusion and participatory models, Morris points to the same issue.
“Participatory outcomes of empowerment and equity do not have agreed upon conceptual or
operational definitions, and consequently are less amenable to measurement than such outcomes as
the percent change in vaccinations before and after a campaign” (Morris, 2005). She goes on to cite
other researchers who support this view and essentially ask the same question: how can one
demonstrate a person or a group has become empowered? Communication strategies which are
participatory stress process rather than outcome indicators (Waisbord, 2001). In such approaches,
qualitative methodologies and tools can be used to assess participants’ confidence, sense of self and
community identity, improved communication skills, and self-efficacy among other areas. In this
regard, the development of a new UN inter-agency resource pack on C4D Research, Monitoring and
Evaluation (United Nations, 2010) is an opportunity for programmers and communication specialists
to assess and harmonise methods and techniques for data collection and analysis.
 Document and share best practices and case studies- Adolescent girls are not a homogenous group
but the constraints and barriers they face share strong commonalities. Experiences and lessons
learned from application of various communication strategies and approaches should be shared
across regions and globally. In addition, an expanded evidence base comprising evaluations of
programmes that have shown impact is needed to determine which strategies have been effective in
building girls leadership. By doing so, opportunities for long-term and sustained resources
mobilization can also be created.
To conclude, in working on adolescent pregnancy, one of the lessons learned from the Health and
Prevention at Schools programme (of which the Lost Among Diapers and Notebooks was a component)
in Brazil was that “all strategies that include social mobilization and communication component
produced more impact than exclusive technical approaches” (Volpi et al, 2010). To realize the
opportunities offered by C4D to enhance and sustain impact of programmes to build girls’ leadership
will depend on how well programmers pay attention to, integrate and invest in this area. Single sector
programmes in the areas of health and nutrition have for long demonstrated impact in the use of
strategic communication methods and tools. The challenge now is to plan for, measure and
demonstrate C4D impact in cross-sectoral thematic areas such as girls’ leadership and empowerment,
that may be harder to programme and measure, but are nevertheless vital to the achievement of the
Millennium Development Goals.
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
39
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DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
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ANNEX A: Case Studies – Description of Key Elements
Programme/
Intervention
Kishori Abhijan (Adolescent Girls’ Adventure): Empowerment of Adolescent Girls15,16
Country
Background
Bangladesh
This project was initially piloted by UNICEF (in partnership with international and local organizations) in 2001 and
scaled up in 2006 to enroll more than 600,000 adolescents including mainly girls and some boys. The programme set
out to lower the high rate of child marriage (68% of women aged 20-24 were married before the legal age of 18),
lower school drop-out rates, increase girls’ economic independence, provide life skills training consisting of enhancing
self-esteem and leadership skills, education related to gender roles and discrimination, health and nutrition, and legal
rights. Livelihoods training were also provided and included vocational skills such as poultry care, handicrafts, sewing,
photography and teacher training.
1. Empower adolescents, especially girls, to participate meaningfully in decisions that affect their lives (including
education, livelihood opportunities and delaying marriage); and become agents of social change
2. To create and sustain a supportive environment for adolescent girl development at household & community level
 10-19 year old out of school, rural, unmarried girls
 14-19 year old secondary school attending, rural girls
 In and out of school boys
 Parents of children enrolled in the programme
 Community influentials such as teachers, community and religious leaders
The goal of the project was to increase knowledge, improve attitudes and enable social and behavioural change
connected to child marriage, dowry, marriage registration, birth registration, child rights and HIV/AIDS. A baseline
survey was conducted to determine current levels of knowledge, attitudes and behaviours. A series of behavioural
monitoring research activities were also carried out during the course of the programme’s implementation.
 Center (or school)- based adolescent groups lead by Peer Leaders (PLs)
 Life skills education
 Community participation
 Intergenerational dialogue
 Livelihood training
Final evaluation was based upon an endline survey as well as three individual qualitative activities. Increase in
adolescents’ knowledge on:
 Laws pertaining to child marriage including the legal age for marriage for girls at 18 and boys at 21; adolescents
reported higher knowledge than adults
 Improved understating of dowry as a forced payment demanded by the groom’s family
 Marriage registration- what, where and when to register
 Birth registration- significant and complete knowledge
 HIV and reproductive health issues such as STIs, pregnancy, menstrual cycle, wet dreams. This increase was much
more pronounced among peer leaders.
Increase in life skill related outcomes:
 Interpersonal communication- adolescents were more likely to initiate and participate in conversations
 Access to a social network where girls can discuss private topics
 Parental consent to join social network centers where adolescents learn, play and receive vocational training
 Higher levels of self-efficacy, improved problem solving skills, significantly higher mobility (both within and outside
the village)
 There were significant increases in the ability of adolescents to mention and report participation in specific life
skills activities.
Impact: Participation has resulted in improved awareness on the benefits of acquiring life skills such as
communication, dealing with stress, ability to discuss topics with others, confidence in convincing others of adopting
positive behaviours and ability to take actions. Some participants with support from their community members were
able to stop child marriages. They also reported undertaking social work (expanding out from the topics in the
programme) to become contributing members of society. Girls reported confidence in taking leadership roles in
decision making about self and family. There has been a gradual decline in child marriage and some villages have
reported being child marriage free.
Project
Objectives
Target
Population
C4D Approach
Interventions
Evaluation
15
Amin, 2007
Sood & Shuaib, 2011
16
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
47
Programme/
Intervention
Entre Amigas (Between Girlfriends)17,18,19,20,21
Country
Nicaragua
Background
As one of the poorest countries in Central America, Nicaragua is reporting early adolescent sexual activity and
high rates of teenage pregnancy and childbearing. Young girls face serious challenges, including risk of HIV, STIs,
and gender based and sexual violence preventing them from achieving their development potential. Entre Amigas
was launched in 2002 by PATH22 in collaboration with CEPS, Punto de Encuentro and the University of Leon.
Project Objectives
To empower adolescent girls by increasing their knowledge on reproductive health, fostering positive
communication and relationships, and strengthening their connection with their community.
Target Population
10-14 year old girls
C4D Approach
 Baseline assessment on knowledge of sexual and reproductive health issues, self-perceptions, communication
patterns, and access to health information
 Social research to document girls’ perspectives and behaviours as well as parents and teachers’ attitudes
 Communication for social change
 Mass media
 Community networks and participatory communication where peer facilitators are involved in all aspects of
the project design & assessment, curriculum development, entertainment script writing and interaction with
mother and teacher groups
Interventions
Multi-sectoral interventions including:
 Peer training and education sessions
 Strengthening support networks: interactive groups of girls, mothers & teachers
 Using TV to model positive behaviour- Sexto Sentido – a widely viewed soap opera featuring a 13 year old girl
whose character was constructed using the baseline findings from Entre Amigas. By highlighting her
interactions with parents, peers, and teachers, the soap opera provides insights into the issues and decisions
faced by girls going through adolescence. The series explores self- efficacy and negotiation skills, myths
associated with body changes, virginity and relationships. It focuses on parents who build confidence, create
equal relationships in the home, and guide girls.
Communication Channels: peer sessions, workshops, sports leagues, puppet shows, dance groups, audiovisual
activities, exchanges between girls and networks, and with mothers and teachers
Evaluation
Impact on the 10-14 year old adolescent girls was significant. “The girls who had participated in a group of
“friends” had a 73% greater probability of being self-assertive.” The probability increased to 91% if both mother
and daughter participated; and if they both participated and watched Sexto Sentido, their probability of being
self-assertive increased to 122%.
Out of every 100 girls who responded as such:
 7 can be attributed solely to Sexto Sentido
 9 can be attributed to being part of a group of friends
 15 to a combination of all 3 activities (group of friends+ mother+ soap opera)
Sexto Sentido also impacted sectors of the youth population that are deprived of social services (areas with least
number of organizations, health and social services)
17Solorzano
et al, 2008
PATH. 2004
19 Lynch, 2008
20Puntos Website
21 Conroy, 2004
22
PATH website
18
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
48
Programme/
Intervention
Entre Fraldas e Cadermos (“Lost Among Diapers and Notebooks”: Empowering Pregnant
Girls)23
Country
Brazil
Background
Adolescent pregnancy has traditionally been approached through existing gender roles and norms prevalent in
society. These often do not take into account adolescents’ own development, expectations and desires.
Although the numbers of adolescent pregnancies has been decreasing over the last decade, their number still
remains high. In 2007, of the 2,795,207 registered births in Brazil, 27,952 were from mothers between 10-14
years of age, while 23 % were from the 15-19 years age group.
UNICEF Brazil and its partner, Bem TV developed this initiative to promote adolescent debate and discussion on
the topic using real life stories. These are stories with which students can relate to and learn from with support
from their teachers, educators and peers.
Project Objectives
The goals of the project were:
1. To raise awareness among adolescents and teachers on the challenges pregnancy presents to adolescent
girls
2. To reinforce adolescent girls’ right to continue their education (pregnancy/ motherhood should not be used
as an excuse to restrict or deny that right)
Target Population
Adolescent students between 13- 19 years
C4D Approach
 Participatory communication using small group discussions to facilitate debate and dialogue among peers on
schooling and adolescent motherhood duties
 Engagement of students in producing their own communication tools
Interventions
A self-contained kit was produced comprising a set of photo stories along with a methodological guide for
teachers. The photo story is based on a girl who got pregnant at 15 and was forced to leave school. This story
was originally created by a group of adolescent boys and girls from low income communities in urban centers.
The photo story is read in the classroom and is followed by debate and discussion. Teachers initiate the debate
by asking simple questions related to the story. The students then work collectively to conclude the story by
finding a way for the girl to go back to school.
The guide serves to orient users on exploring the topic of adolescent pregnancy through media production. It
contains suggested activities for both teachers and students such as conducting research and showcasing results
within the school, developing a photo story with characters and context, writing a school bulletin, promoting
debates, wall paintings, movies and songs as a way to stimulate discussion.
Communication Channels: group discussions, photo story kit, media production including photo and digital
media, cartoons, school bulletins
Evaluation
This project was piloted in public schools across 4 different regions in Brazil. Based on the evaluation, the
materials and methodology were revised in order to prepare it for scale at the national level through the “Health
and Prevention at Schools” programme. The results from the pilot indicate:
 78% of students reported to have changed their behaviour related to prevention actions, and increased
knowledge sharing with their peers.
 85% of teachers used this material after participation in the process
 80% of teachers considered the material to be excellent
 90% of students considered material to be excellent
Key Point: As adolescent girls, some of whom are young mothers, work through each step of the media
production, they are able to reflect upon their own educational process and the impact of adolescent pregnancy
among their peers
23
Volpi et al, 2010
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
49
Programme/
Intervention
Adolescent Female Sex Workers in Ukraine- Discriminated Against and Excluded,
Evidence Based Service Provision and Empowerment 24
Country
Background
Ukraine
Ukraine has one of the highest HIV prevalence rates in Europe with female sex workers comprise
close to 20% of that rate. Adolescent female sex workers (A-FSW) aged 10-19 years comprise 20% of
all FSWs in Ukraine. Because of their high levels of engagement in unprotected sex this group is
highly vulnerable to HIV.
To reach A-FSWs through behavioural change and risk reduction interventions. In parallel:
 Adapt health and social services to their needs
 Make livelihood skills building services available
 Advocating for changes in policies and legislation
10-19 year old adolescent female sex workers
 Behavioural change communication strategy for increasing knowledge, skills and developing
positive attitudes and motivation in service seeking behavior
 Participation in the planning, implementation and evaluation of services
 Empowerment of adolescent female sex workers through building their social network
 Advocacy work to revise the national AIDS law for HIV testing for adolescent girls
Outreach workers recruited girls to a drop-in centre that offers a safe space, counseling and
referrals to governmental services (health and social). Girls are accompanied by the outreach
worker and/or peer educator to the health services.
Project Objectives
Target Population
C4D Approach
Interventions
Through the use of mobile phones a mobile communication network was established where social
workers liaised between the girls and service providers (such as lawyers, psychologists, health
workers, etc). Content of communication consisted of announcements, clarifications, reminders,
emergencies and counseling. This type of one-on-one communication established trust between
outreach staff and the girls.
Cell phones were used to remind adolescent girls about their medical check-ups.
Evaluation
Communication channels included: direct contact with outreach worker, information leaflets and
book of services, peer education, individual and group counseling, and mobile phones
Process and output evaluation reveals an increase in demand for services, high client satisfaction,
and an increase in service uptake. For example, the initial estimate aimed at serving50 girls, but
within a few months 100 girls were already engaged in the services.
 96% said they would remain in touch with the outreach services after their immediate problems
were solved.
 98% reported improved HIV knowledge and skills for prevention and better access to health care
 Empowerment efforts: active participation of A-FSWs in the intervention including 84% saying
they would accompany others to the health services.One girl who was the first peer leader also
participated in the Regional Coordination Council and provided feedback on the intervention
model to local stakeholders.
24
Teltschik et al, 2010
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
50
Programme/
Intervention
BiruhTesfa (“Bright Future”)25
Country
Ethiopia
Background
As the number of young girls migrating from rural to urban areas continues to increase in Ethiopia- there is a
heightened vulnerability of those girls to HIV. Among the girls who migrate to urban areas, majority end up
living in low income areas working in low status jobs such as domestic workers. A study by the Population
Council on adolescent girls in urban slum areas found that they are more likely to be victims of sexual abuse
and their long working hours and social isolation exclude them from benefiting from mainstream youth
programmes. This project was specifically designed to reach the most marginalized and hardest to reach girls.
Project Objectives
To address the social isolation of adolescent girls in urban Addis Ababa by providing social support, HIV
education and skills
Target Population
10-19 year old adolescent girls who are out-of-school, rural to urban migrants, domestic workers and orphans
C4D Approach
Group based mentoring with building knowledge and skills on basic literacy, information about HIV,
reproductive health and gender based violence
Interventions
Interventions took place at a couple of different levels beginning with the identification and training of female
mentors. These mentors were local residents of the project site who were known and respected in the
community. Their one week training included life skills, HIV/AIDS, reproductive health, gender issues and
basic literacy.
After training the mentors conducted house-to-house recruitment to identify the most marginalized girls for
participation in the programme. There is a systematic approach to reaching every household to determine its
members and eligibility for out-of-school girls in the household. Permission to participate is secured from
parents, guardians and employers (for domestic workers). Mentors then become responsible for following up
with girls they enroll into the programme.
Groups meet in safe spaces where they receive training in literacy, numeracy, life skills, HIV/AIDS and
reproductive health. They also receive a wellness check-up, free medical care from government health
facilities, counseling and support for victims of sexual violence, and basic material support (soap, books,
pencils, sanitary napkins, etc)
Evaluation
Endline survey conducted with focus on social participation and social safety in relation to community wide
changes and service statistics tracked participation. Results were compared to the baseline survey which took
place at the beginning of the project.
 35% reported having many friends (29% at baseline)
 25% reported having a safe space (7% at baseline)
 Girls in the programme were more likely to be considered “socially participatory”(measured through
friendship networks, making new friends, or participating in girl groups) as compared to girls who were in
the control site.
 Girls in the project site were significantly more likely to have undergone voluntary counseling and testing
for HIV (as compare to control site)
25
Erulkar et al, 2011
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
51
Programme/
Intervention
Girls Gaining Ground26
Country
India
Background
India has the largest youth population in the world and a national policy that commits priority to working
with adolescent girls. But in India, as in other developing countries, women and girls are subjected to
gender discrimination based on social and cultural norms. This programme was initiated to reach and
empower girls in remote rural areas in basic life skills and knowledge and behaviour on health and nutrition.
Project Objectives
1. Empower adolescent girls’ to become self-confident, well-informed and responsible decision makers, by
creating awareness especially in the context of health and nutrition, and building their life skills
2. Address issues of child and adolescent health and nutrition at the community level through the members
of the adolescent girls’ groups
3. Advocate for issues related to child and adolescent health and nutrition through girls’ groups at
community level
Target Population
Adolescent girls (no age specified in the project brief but can assume to be 10-19)
C4D Approach
Behaviour change of adolescent girls through a multi-sectoral approach to empowerment:
 develop agency of adolescent girls using a life skills approach
 improve their knowledge on accessing government services and nutrition and health education
Interventions
 Facilitators recruited from the same communities/ villages as the girls and trained to work with the girls
 Girls receive training in group sessions, classroom style, and twice a week. Topics include life skills,
health, hygiene and nutrition. Safe spaces where the girls meet provides an opportunity for them share
experiences, bond with each other, participate in creative learning such as painting and creating songs,
they discover their own potential while also strengthening group cohesiveness.
 Field visits are conducted by the girl groups to learn about their village and available resources. As a
project activity, they identify an issue and work to address it, “learning by doing”
 Outreach activities were conducted to facilitate interaction between the girl groups and the community.
In this way, the girls get to showcase their learning and skills.
 Following the completion of the training additional vocational skills as identified by the girl groups are
also provided
 During the project the girls are tested for anemia and prescribed the necessary treatment.
Evaluation
End-line survey conducted and compared with baseline results. Analysis focused on 1- measuring
knowledge, perceptions and skills:
 Significant increase on knowledge regarding nutrition such as frequency of meals, iron rich foods,
consumption of green leafy vegetables; anemia and its symptoms; early initiation of breastfeeding;
immunization of children; knowledge of growth charts and diarrhea management
2- measuring and determining areas of self-esteem and self-confidence
 The learning by doing component empowered girls to communicate their nutritional needs to families
leading to improved diets
 Improved communication and negotiation skills (ability to talk to friends, mothers and fathers)
 Improved mobility with confidence around village
 Self-awareness, appreciation, and confidence in bodily changes
 Ability to take decisions and negotiate them in their favor resulting in a delay of marriage
 Confidence to seek health care and other services such as provision of water, sanitation, street lights, and
receiving useful responses on other issues
26
Kewalramani, 2010
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52
Programme/
Intervention
Listener as Producer: Minga Peru’s Intercultural Radio Educative Project in the Peruvian
Amazon27,28,29
Country
Peru (Amazon)
Background
Minga Peru, a non-governmental organization in Peru, with support from UNIFEM, implemented an Intercultural
Radio Educative Project aimed at addressing violence and HIV/AIDS in rural communities. The project capitalized
on the popularity of its thrice weekly radio programme Bienvenida Salud (Welcome Health), its’ on the ground
community resource persons (community promotoras), and strategically leveraged it with a school based
initiative, involving teachers, students and community members to prevent and reduce domestic violence and
HIV/AIDS. It sought to empower victims of violence (mostly children and women) and reduce prejudice, stigma
and discrimination associated with being HIV- positive.
Sexual activity for young adolescents in the Amazonian Peru usually begins early. Hence, it is not uncommon for
girls around 12, 13 or 14 years to become pregnant.
Project Objectives
To increase awareness, knowledge and affect behavioural & social transformation on domestic violence and
HIV/AIDS and provide life skills through an integrated school based curriculum to a culturally diverse population
 Adult women for the Bienvenida Salud (Welcome Health) radio programme
 12- 24 year old adolescent girls and boys in secondary schools for the integrated school based curriculum
Target Population
C4D Approach




Interventions
Some 174 school teachers in 24 rural schools were trained by Minga Peru to integrate issues of domestic violence
and HIV/AIDS in the secondary school curriculum, directly spurring class discussion on these issues – through
multiple courses -- with some 4,650 students. Further, these ground-based, year-round educational efforts in
rural schools were complemented with Minga’s popular on-air, intercultural radio educative programme,
BienvenidaSalud (Welcome Health) which purposely incorporated themes of domestic violence, HIV/AIDS, and
others in its thrice-weekly broadcasts. Further, several students in each participating school were trained as radio
correspondents, in-charge of encouraging youth in their respective communities to listen to Bienvenida Salud and
then provide feedback, including proposing new subjects for inclusion and treatment on the radio programme.
These radio correspondents, along with their teachers and Minga’s cadre of community-based promotoras, local
women acting as sparkplugs of change, undertook training and other programmatic activities on the topic of
domestic violence and HIV/AIDS for their respective communities.
Communication Channels: radio, pedagogical techniques included student-centered class-room dialogue,
dramatization, role plays, and case studies.
Participatory communication framework
Integrated life skills into school based curriculum
Increasing knowledge, skills and capacities of adolescents
Empowerment of communities and individuals
27Singhal&
Dura, 2008
Dura et al, 2008
29
Dean et al, 2000
28
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
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Evaluation
Evaluation consisted of surveys, in-depth interviews and focus group discussions administered to adolescents.
 Dedicated listenership to Bienvenida Salud was significantly higher (89%) among students attending school in
rural areas than in urban areas (50%), suggesting that the radio programme is actually reaching those young
audiences who, to begin with, have little access to outside information. In this sense, Bienvenida Salud is
helping reduce information inequity gaps.
 Primary and secondary data show that students have learned about their rights as individuals, about different
forms of violence and about taking preventive measures against HIV.
 Students said that they now talk about these issues with friends & family members, esp. domestic violence.
 Teachers felt a sense of pride, responsibility & accountability in making a difference in their communities.
They found the trainings to be useful for their professional development & to help them serve the students
better.
 Adult women, the primary target audience of Bienvenida Salud, wrote most of the letters (45 %) to the radio
programme. Many of the adult women listeners wrote in to share that they have either abused their children
or been abused by their partners. Adult men and youth (both male and female) are increasing as an audience
segment of Bienvenida Salud and also increasingly writing in to the programme. This finding suggests
increased involvement of men in the welfare of their families and their partners.
Programme/
Intervention
Girl Power: Tea Garden Adolescent Clubs Grow Female Leaders 30
Country
India
Background
In Assam, India, families living on tea estates are usually marginalized and excluded. Assam
produces eighty-eight percent of India’s tea and its tea communities represent about twenty
percent of the state’s population. Although child labour is legally prohibited, girls may still end up
working on the tea plantations. They often forego school to help their families. As part of its
mandate to seek out the marginalized, UNICEF reached out to the community to encourage the tea
gardens adolescent girls to go to school.
Project Objectives
To increase awareness, knowledge and affect behavioural and social transformation in promoting
adolescent girls to go and stay in school
Target Population
Adolescent girls
C4D Approach
 Increasing knowledge, skills and capacities of girls
 Participatory communication in group setting
 life skills and educational tutoring
Interventions
Adolescent girls club established on the tea estate where club members tutor school drop-outs and
provide life skills education including proper menstrual hygiene, HIV protection and anaemia
treatment. They also address child rights and child marriage. The girls come together in activities
such as crocheting and sewing with an opportunity to connect with friends.
Evaluation
Not available
30
Walker, 2009
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DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
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Annex B: Map of C4D Approaches and Methods Employed by Programmes Reviewed







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Peer Education


Activities and Games

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Information Network Mapping

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
Advocacy

Technical training

 

(vocational/livelihood/media)
  
Life Skills training

Social marketing
   
Community Media; Theatre
Cadermos, Brazil
Mass Media: TV, Radio
Entre Fraldas e
Community Mobilization
Nicaragua
Household Mobilization
Entre Amigas,
Intergenerational
Bangladesh
Interpersonal
Kishori Abhijan,
Participatory
Programme/
Interventions


 


Adolescent
Female Sex
Workers,
 



 





Ukraine
Biruh Tesfa,
Ethiopia
Girls Gaining
Ground, India
 
 
























Listener as
Producer: Minga
Peru’s Radio
   


Project
DRAFT – Role & Challenges of C4D in Building Leadership of Adolescent Girls
56
