What Works for Women and Girls

What Works—Strengthening the Enabling Environment: Addressing Violence AgainstWomen1. Community-based participatory learning approaches involving men and women cancreate more gender-equitable relationships, thereby decreasing violence.2. Establishing comprehensive post-rape care protocols, which include PEP, can improveservices for women.3. Microfinance programs can lead to reduction in gender-based violence whenintegrated with participatory training on HIV, gender, and violence.Promising Strategies:4. Training teachers about gender-based violence can change norms about acceptanceof gender-based violence.5. Multi-media health promotion can increase awareness of violence against women.6. Integrating HIV prevention into services for abused women may increase condomuse.EVIDENCE1. Community-based participatory learning approaches involving men and women can createmore gender-equitable relationships, thereby decreasing violence. [See also 11A. TransformingGender Norms]An evaluation of the Stepping Stones program for young people in the Eastern CapeProvince of South Africa found that the program was effective in reducing sexual risktaking and violence perpetuation among young, rural African men. The evaluation wasa random controlled trial. Men reporting fewer partners, higher condom use, and lesstransactional sex, perpetration of intimate partner violence and substance use (Jewkeset al., 2008). Stepping Stones is a gender transformative approach designed to improvesexual health through building stronger and more gender-equitable relationships amongpartners, including better communication. Stepping Stones uses participatory learningapproaches to increase knowledge of sexual health, and build awareness of risks and theconsequences of risk taking. The program included a 50-hour intervention/workshop(with a comparison group receiving a 3-hour intervention on HIV and safer sex) (Jewkeset al., 2006b). (Gray II) (violence, condom use, sex behavior, South Africa)WHAT WORKS FOR WOMEN AND GIRLS303