Stepping Stones and livelihoods strengthening intervention – a pilot study
Overview:
This is an evaluation of a new intervention that combines a proven gender transformative intervention, Stepping Stones, with a new livelihoods strengthening intervention, Creating Futures, working with young men and women in urban informal settlements in Durban, South Africa. The intervention seeks through a series of 20 participatory workshops to get young people to reduce risky sexual behaviour, strengthen their livelihoods and act in more gender equitable ways. It builds on regional work that suggests that if you can transform gender relationships and strengthen women’s economic power substantial gains in HIV prevention can be made. The emphasis of this project is around learning about ‘doing’ the intervention in complex settings, as well as understanding the potential impact of the intervention on a range of outcomes. The project forms the basis for regional research and programmatic engagement building on this project and intervention.
Objectives:
- To learn how to ‘do’ the intervention in complex settings
- To understand the potential impact of the intervention on a range of outcomes, namely: Does a combined Stepping Stones and Livelihood Strengthening intervention lead to changes in sexual risk behaviours?
- Does the combined intervention enable livelihood strengthening?
- As a combined Stepping Stones and livelihood strengthening intervention takes place, how does this impact on gender identity and relationships?
Methodological approach:
This is a mixed methods pilot evaluation and feasibility study. We are using a shortened interrupted time series design with 12 month follow up for the quantitative evaluation and an integrated qualitative process evaluation to understand changes and challenges.