Empowering Adolescent Girls in Developing Countries

Caroline Harper is a Principal Research Fellow and Head of the Social Development programme at the UK-based Overseas Development Institute (ODI), focusing on gender, generations and exclusion.Nicola Jones is a political scientist and Principal Research Fellow at ODI, as well as Director of the longitudinal Gender and Adolescence: Global Evidence (GAGE) research programme.Anita Ghimire is the director for social science research at the Nepal Institute for Social and Environmental Research (NISER). Rachel Marcus is a freelance social development researcher focused on gender, childhood, youth and adolescence. Grace Bantebya Kyomuhendo is a Professor in the School of Women and Gender Studies at Makerere University in Uganda.

• Introduction: The significance of adolescence in the life course Chapter 1: What can a focus on gender norms contribute to girls’ empowerment? Ethiopia Chapter 2: ‘Sticky’ gendered norms: change and stasis in the patterning of child marriage in Amhara, Ethiopia lChapter 3: The politics of policy and programme implementation to advance adolescent girls’ well-being in Ethiopia Uganda Chapter 4: The paradox of change and continuity in social norms and practices affecting adolescent girls’ capabilities and transitions to adulthood in rural Uganda Chapter 5: From national laws and policies to local programmes: obstacles and opportunities in communications for adolescent girls’ empowerment in Uganda Viet Nam Chapter 6: Intersecting inequalities: the impact of gender norms on Hmong adolescent girls’ education, marriage and work in Viet Nam Chapter 7: Triple invisibility: the neglect of ethnic minority adolescent girls in Viet Nam NepalChapter 8: Small but persistent steps on the road to gender equality: marriage patterns in Far West Nepal Chapter 9: Continuity and change: How embedded programmes improve the lives of adolescent girls Conclusion: Pushing the boundaries of social order: adolescent girls and norm change

Excerpt of review in Gender and Development, Routledge"Empowering Adolescent Girls in Developing Countries provides excellent analysis of new research into norm change relating to adolescent girls. This volume explores how discriminatory gender norms can limit adolescent girls’ development of their capabilities, while also highlighting pathways for realising more egalitarian gender norms. This book is an important addition to current discussions on both adolescence and social norm change in gender and development spheres. Policymakers, academics, practitioners, and students in the field of gender and development alike will benefit from its presentation of empirical research, and its analysis of different aspects of policies and programmes across multiple countries and contexts." -- Imogen Davies, Global Adviser – Youth, Gender and Active Citizenship, Oxfam, UK