#1 POLICY LESSONS ON REDUCING GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE GENDER INNOVATION LAB FEDERATION EVIDENCE SERIES GENDER INNOVATION LAB FEDERATION The Gender Innovation Lab (GIL) Federation is a World Bank community of practice coordinated by the Gender Group that brings together the Bank’s five regional GILs: Africa (AFR), East Asia and Pacific (EAP), Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), Middle East and North Africa (MNA), and South Asia (SAR). Together, they are conducting impact evaluations of development interventions to generate evidence and lessons on how to close gender gaps in human capital, earnings, productivity, assets, voice and agency. With over 188 impact evaluations in 66 countries completed to date, the GIL Federation is building the evidence base for governments, development organizations, and the private sector to increase uptake of effective policies that address the underlying causes of gender inequality. Gender-based violence (GBV) affects more than one in Another RCT by the Africa GIL in Tanzania evaluated a three women over the course of their lifetimes, program that offered a goal-setting activity to girls who regardless of social or economic boundaries.1 Violence had previously participated in safe space clubs against women and girls takes a significant toll on modeled on the Uganda program, where they received survivors and their families and exacts heavy social and mentorship and life skills training. The research finds the economic costs. In some countries, violence against intervention led to reductions in young women’s reports women is estimated to cost up to 3.7 percent of GDP— of intimate partner violence (IPV),4 as did a related more than double of what most governments spend on program that organized a soccer club for the male education.2 Lockdowns and reduced mobility during the partners of the girls. It too offered education on sexual COVID-19 pandemic led to sharp increases in violence and reproductive health. against women and girls. The GIL Federation is generating rigorous evidence across the world to These encouraging findings are echoed in a study understand what works, and what does not, in reducing conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic in Bolivia. GBV. This note presents evidence on four key findings An RCT of a program that combined training in soft based on impact evaluations from three regions. skills and technical skills with sex education, mentoring, and job-finding assistance finds that the program reduced the violence experienced by girls, even during FINDING 1. WOMEN’S ECONONOMIC the first six months of pandemic-related lockdowns.5 Additional ongoing evaluations by the Africa GIL in the EMPOWERMENT CAN REDUCE GBV context of the Sahel Women’s Empowerment and Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) by the Africa and Demographics Project (SWEDD) will provide more LAC GILs evaluating adolescent multifaceted evidence on the type and composition of economic empowerment programs indicate that these empowerment programs that show most promise for interventions can reduce young women’s experience of reducing GBV among adolescents. violence. In Uganda, the Africa GIL conducted an RCT to evaluate an empowerment program that offered girls The finding that women’s economic empowerment can in selected communities vocational training as well as reduce GBV is also highlighted in quasi-experimental information on sexual and reproductive health. The work by the LAC GIL and survey data analyzed by the study finds that, four years later, girls in program EAP GIL. A study by the LAC GIL in Brazil used a communities were less likely to report having difference-in-differences strategy to estimate how experienced forced sex.3 narrowing the gender wage gap impacts female homicides, hospitalizations, and reports of violence.6 The study finds that a narrowing of the gender wage after the end of the program, there was no IPV impact gap among poor populations and younger women is for women in households that received only the associated with a reduction in homicides. community livelihoods program. Cash transfers to woman alone increased sexual IPV by 6 percentage The EAP GIL conducted a phone survey during the points, but cash transfers to women in villages receiving COVID-19 pandemic, which captured information on the community livelihoods program reduced sexual IPV exposure to GBV and the factors potentially associated by 13 percentage points. These results suggest that in with it.7 The study finds that the COVID-19 pandemic communities where norms are conservative and the significantly exacerbated women’s perceived risk and broader community is not benefitting, boosting women's experience of violence. Correlational analysis using bargaining power can lead to an IPV backlash that machine learning and stepwise linear regression persists a year after the program ends. When whole suggests that two key correlates of GBV are food communities benefit, transfers to women may be less insecurity and women’s access to jobs, with food threatening to men and can generate significant insecurity increasing GBV and access to jobs mitigating reductions in IPV. the increase during the pandemic in Indonesia. A quasi-experimental study by the EAP GIL in the Philippines used regression discontinuity design to FINDING 2. SOCIAL PROTECTION CAN examine the effects of a conditional cash transfer REDUCE ECONOMIC STRESS FOR WOMEN, program on GBV.11 The study finds no statistically significant effect on IPV or GBV outside of home, but it BUT PROGRAM DESIGN IS KEY TO ACHIEVING estimates a decline in emotional non-partner domestic REDUCTIONS IN GBV violence. The authors argue that the main channels by Recent global evidence suggests that, on average, which the decrease in violence occurred were stress cash transfer programs to households experiencing reduction due to higher income, increase in poverty are likely to reduce rates of IPV, primarily by empowerment and bargaining power, and strengthened reducing economic stress.8 However, program design social networks. Similarly, a quasi-experimental matters. The link between the provision of social safety evaluation by LAC GIL of Bolsa Familia conditional cash nets and a reduction in IPV is not automatic, and in transfers program in Brazil finds no impact on female some contexts, there may be risks of increased homicides.12 household conflict and backlash against some women recipients. This needs to be closely monitored. The GIL Overall, these studies show that social protection Federation has contributed to this literature with studies programs reduce economic stress for women, but this in East Asia and Africa. does not always translate into reductions in GBV. Complementary interventions may be needed to Public work programs provide a source of income to achieve the desired outcome, and close attention women that can reduce economic stress and, should be paid to possible backlash from men or other potentially, GBV. A study by the EAP GIL in the Lao community members. People’s Democratic Republic analyzed the impact of a randomly allocated public work program.9 The program was targeted at rural women who received wages for 18 FINDING 3. ACCESS TO PROTECTIVE months. The research finds that the program increased INFRASTRUCTURES CAN COMPLEMENT THE women’s income, but it did not affect their self-reported EFFECTS OF EMPOWERMENT PROGRAMS experience of GBV. The study argues that the lack of effects on IPV may be linked to the need of A quasi-experimental study by the LAC GIL in Brazil complementary interventions, such as behavioral suggests policies that directly focus on women’s safety change components targeted at both men and women. successfully reduce violence against women. The study used data from 2,074 municipalities and a difference-in- The Africa GIL conducted an RCT to evaluate an anti- differences methodology.13 It finds that the poverty program in northern Nigeria.10 The study establishment of police stations specifically designed to compared impacts across control communities and address crimes against women is associated with a 15 communities assigned to three treatment arms: a percent reduction in the female homicide rate for livelihoods program that provided benefits to both men women between 15 to 49 years of age. The reductions and women in the community, a cash transfer to in homicide rates were even higher for younger women. women, and the combination of the two. Twelve months This finding indicates that the establishment of women’s police stations is a promising intervention, but additional In contrast, preliminary results from another RCT by the causal evidence from other contexts should be AFRICA GIL concerning a couples’ discussion group gathered to provide external validity. program for members of village savings and loan associations (VSLAs) in Rwanda show increases in IPV. Compared to couples in control communities, the FINDING 4. DISCUSSION GROUPS THAT program led to substantially higher rates of IPV among ENGAGE MEN CAN REDUCE INTIMATE participating couples and even higher rates among non- PARTNER VIOLENCE BUT RESULTS DEPEND participating members of the same VSLAs.16 Ongoing discussions with the implementing partners have ON CONTEXT AND IMPLEMENTATION identified several possible reasons for the negative Analysis of Demographic and Health Survey data results, including issues with facilitator experience and suggests joint decision making can be important for training, facilitator supervision and support, overall reducing IPV. The Africa GIL analyzed these data from program management, accelerated timelines to 12 Sub-Saharan countries and found that rates of IPV accommodate funding constraints, adequacy of are lowest in couples where both members report joint community-level engagement, and program adaptations decision making for major household purchases.14 to facilitate the research design. This indicates that These correlations suggest that fostering shared gender transformative couples’ programs must be accountability and cooperation within couples may be implemented carefully and monitored throughout important for reducing rates of IPV. implementation to avoid negative impacts. In the same vein, the Africa GIL conducted an RCT to The Africa GIL also evaluated the impact of men’s only assess a couple’s discussion group program for new discussion groups in the North and South Kivu and expecting parents in Rwanda. Surveying nearly provinces of the Democratic Republic of Congo.17 The 1,200 couple across four districts, the study finds that program included 16 weekly meetings and followed a the program led to substantial reductions in IPV, standard curriculum focused on challenging unequal increases in reproductive health-seeking behaviors, gender norms and reducing violence against women increases in women’s participation in household and girls. Villages were paired based on socio- decision making, and increases in men’s participation in demographic characteristics and, within each pair of housework.15 The program included 15 weekly sessions villages, one site was randomized to either the treatment with curriculum content on concepts of gender and arm receiving the program or the control arm not power, fatherhood, household decision making, receiving the program. A follow-up survey conducted 8- violence against women, child development, and men’s 12 months after the program ended finds that the engagement in reproductive and maternal health. intervention led to improvements in intrahousehold Twenty-one months after baseline, women in the relationships (increased quality of intimate relationships, intervention group reported less past-year IPV than the increases in men’s participation in housework, and more control group: 23 percentage points lower in physical equal gender attitudes), but it did not impact rates of IPV and 25 percentage points lower in sexual IPV. IPV. FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT Diego Ubfal dubfal@worldbank.org 1818 H St NW Washington, DC 20433 USA https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/gender ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This brief is a product of collaboration between the World Bank Gender Group and the Gender Innovation Labs. It was prepared by Daniel Halim, Diego Ubfal, and Rigzom Wangchuk with key inputs from Diana Arango, Elizaveta Perova, and Rachael Pierotti. It was copy-edited by Leslie Ashby. Other contributors include Lourdes Rodriguez Chamussy, Maria Emilia Cucagna, Isis Gaddis, Markus Goldstein, Jacobus Joost De Hoop, Forest Brach Jarvis, Hillary C. Johnson, Lili Mottaghi, Michael B. O'Sullivan, Laura B. Rawlings, Javier Romero, Jayati Sethi, and Emcet Tas. The World Bank GILs and the GIL Federation are supported by the Umbrella Facility for Gender Equality (UFGE), a multi-donor trust fund administered by the World Bank and supported with generous contributions from Australia, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Latvia, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Wellspring Philanthropic Fund. ENDNOTES 1 World Health Organization. Violence Against Women Prevalence Estimates, 2018. Technical Report. 2 Klugman, Jeni, Lucia Hanmer, Sarah Twigg, Tazeen Hasan, Jennifer McCleary-Sills, and Julieth Santamaria. 2014. Voice and Agency: Empowering Women and Girls for Shared Prosperity. World Bank. See also Gender- Based Violence (Violence Against Women and Girls). Social Sustainability and Inclusion. Brief. The World Bank. 3 Bandiera, Oriana, Niklas Buehren, Robin Burgess, Markus Goldstein, Selim Gulesci, Imran Rasul, and Munshi Sulaiman. 2020. Women's Empowerment in Action: Evidence from a Randomized Control Trial in Africa. American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 12 (1): 210-59. 4 Shah, Manisha, Jennifer Seager, Joao Montalvao, and Markus Goldstein. 2022. Two Sides of Gender: Sex, Power, and Adolescence. World Bank Policy Research Working Paper 10072. 5 Gulesci, Selim, Manuela Puente Beccar, and Diego Ubfal. 2021. Can youth empowerment programs reduce violence against girls during the COVID-19 pandemic? 2021. Journal of Development Economics (153): 102716. 6 Perova, Elizaveta; Reynolds, Sarah; Schmutte, Ian. 2021. Does the Gender Wage Gap Influence Intimate Partner Violence in Brazil? Evidence from Administrative Health Data. World Bank Policy Research Working Paper WPS9656. 7 Halim, Daniel, England Rhys Can, and Elizaveta Perova. 2020. What Factors Exacerbate and Mitigate the Risk of Gender-Based Violence During COVID-19? Insights From a Phone Survey in Indonesia. The World Bank. 8 For a review of cash transfers and IPV see: Buller, Ana Maria, Amber Peterman, Meghna Ranganathan, Alexandra Bleile, Melissa Hidrobo and Lori Heise. 2018. A Mixed-Method Review of Cash Transfers and Intimate Partner Violence in Low- and Middle-Income Countries. The World Bank Research Observer, Volume 33 (2): 218–258, 9 Perova, Elizaveta, Erik Johnson, Aneesh Mannava, Sarah Reynolds, and Alana Teman. 2021. Public Work Programs and Gender-Based Violence: Evidence from Lao PDR. World Bank Policy Research Working Paper 9691. 10 Cullen, Claire, Paula Gonzalez Martinez, and Sreelakshmi Papineni. 2020. Empowering Women Without Backlash? Experimental Evidence on the Impacts of a Cash Transfer and Community Livelihoods Program on Intimate Partner Violence in Northern Nigeria. Working Paper. 11 Dervisevic, Ervin, Elizaveta Perova, and Abhilasha Sahay. 2022. Conditional Cash Transfers and Gender-Based Violence-Does the Type of Violence Matter? World Bank Policy Research Working Paper 10122. 12 Litwin, Ashley, Elizaveta Perova, and Sarah Anne Reynolds. 2019. A conditional cash transfer and Women's empowerment: Does Bolsa Familia Influence intimate partner violence? Social Science & Medicine 238: 112462. 13 Perova, Elizaveta and Sarah Anne Reynolds. Women's police stations and intimate partner violence: Evidence from Brazil. Social Science & Medicine 174 (2017): 188-196. 14 Donald, Aletheia, Cheryl Doss, Markus Goldstein, and Sakshi Gupta. 2021. Sharing Responsibility through Joint Decision Making and Implications for Intimate-Partner Violence Evidence from 12 Sub-Saharan African Countries. World Bank Policy Research Working Paper 9760. 15 Doyle, Kate, Ruti Levtov, Gary Barker, Gautam Bastian, Jeffrey Bingenheimer, Shamsi Kazimbaya, Anicet Nzabonimpa, Julie Pulerwitz, Felix Sayinzoga, Vandana Sharma, and Dominik Shattuck. 2018. Gender- transformative Bandebereho couples’ intervention to promote male engagement in reproductive and maternal health and violence prevention in Rwanda: Findings from a randomized controlled trial. PloS one 13.4 (2018): e0192756. 16 Direct communication from the Africa GIL, working paper available upon request. 17 Vaillant, Julia, Estelle Koussoube, Danielle Roth, Rachael Pierotti, Mazeda Hossain, and Kathryn Falb. 2020. Engaging men to transform inequitable gender attitudes and prevent intimate partner violence: a cluster randomised controlled trial in North and South Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo. BMJ Global Health 5.5: e002223. See also Pierotti, Rachael, Milli Lake, and Chloe Lewis. 2018. Equality on His Terms: Doing and Undoing Gender Through Men’s Discussion Groups. Gender & Society 32(4):540-62.