Stop Violence Against Girls in School

Recent reviews on what works to challenge violence against girls have concluded that the evidence base is weak, and there is a clear need for robust research to help inform interventions. This study is one of the first comprehensive attempts to address this gap in knowledge. It does this through analyzing the influence of a multi-level intervention, ActionAid's Stop Violence Against Girls in School, a five year project (2008-3013) funded by the UK's Big Lottery Fund. This report presents a cross-country review of findings from endline studies carried out in three districts in Kenya, Ghana and Mozambique for Stop Violence Against Girls in School. The study aimed to assess change over the course of the project, and to consider the implications for future interventions concerned with gender violence in schools and communities. The research questions that guided the study are:

1. How have schooling experiences for girls changed since 2009? Have there been changes in the gendered patterns of enrolment, completion and achievement in project schools, and in gender relations within schools? How can we account for any changes and continuities?
2. Since 2009, have there been changes in attitudes to violence and inequalities? How have these manifested in everyday relationships? How are these linked to the political, social and economic context? How are these linked to the intervention?
3. Have there been changes in patterns of violence that girls experience in schools, homes and communities, and in their responses to violence? How has the intervention influenced changes?
4. How have legislative and policy frameworks changed? How have policies and laws been enacted at local level, particularly in relation to formal and informal protection systems? How has the intervention influenced changes? (p.7)