In Ethiopia’s Amhara region, almost half of all girls are married by the age of 15. By the time they turn 18, nearly three out of four girls are married. Early marriage presents many health risks for these girls that are compounded by their lack of economic autonomy.
To address this vulnerability, ICRW is working with CARE Ethiopia to improve the sexual and reproductive health and economic well-being of adolescent girls by combining health programs with economic empowerment interventions to reach 5,000 married girls in Amhara.
ICRW is evaluating the intervention by comparing an implementation model that combines both reproductive health and economic empowerment training to models that provide each in isolation and against a comparison group receiving no programming. The goal is to better understand the potential synergies between health and economic interventions and outcomes. The core indicators being examined include changes in girls’ sexual and reproductive health, such as their use of contraceptives, and changes in their economic independence, such as whether they use savings accounts. Through exploring these questions, the project aims to offer tested best practices to apply in future programs for girls.