Enhancing the SRHR, Safety, and Livelihoods of Women and Girls in Côte d’Ivoire
EngenderHealth is partnering on this project with Renaissance Santé Bouaké and ONG Cavoequiva, two Côte d’Ivoire nongovernmental organizations.
According to the UNESCO Institute of Statistics, the primary school completion rate was at 68 percent in 2022 for girls and 69 percent for boys. However, the completion rates for lower secondary education reveal a drop-off, with 55.5 percent of girls and 60.2 percent of boys.
Working in 100 communities deemed vulnerable by the Côte d’Ivoire government, this project will establish designated safe spaces where out-of-school girls and young women can access critical services, including:
- Comprehensive sexuality education classes to enhance bodily autonomy and healthy decision-making for better futures
- Workforce readiness, vocational skills training programs, and financial support to set up income-generating activities to improve economic opportunities
- Sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) services, including contraception care and obstetric care
- Reporting mechanisms and legal resources for those experiencing any form of GBV, including abuse, coercion, and early marriage
This project also engages influential community leaders in conversations focused on gender norms to explore attitudes and practices that negatively impact the health and well-being of women and girls, such as early marriage. Clubs for husbands and future husbands (boys aged 12-25) will aim to change social behavior and reduce gender inequalities. This transformative initiative responds to immediate needs while create a sustainable platform for helping generations of girls and women maximize their potentials.
This project is part of the Sahel Women’s Empowerment and Demographic Dividend (SWEDD) regional initiative, a joint response by the United Nations and the World Bank Group. The six Sahel countries are Burkina Faso, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire, Mali, Mauritania and Niger. The overall goal of the initiative is to accelerate the demographic transition, to spur the demographic dividend (the economic benefits when the share of working-age population is larger than the non-working-age share of the population), and to reduce gender inequality in the Sahel region.
