In many cultural settings, adolescent girls have narrow social networks and few places where they can gather to meet with peers, form new friendships and alliances, receive mentoring support, and acquire new and valued skills. Girls’ lives can become increasingly restricted to the domestic sphere—nominally in order to protect them from dangers outside the home. Likewise, communities are deprived of the energies and talents of young females who are at a critical life stage—a time when they are young enough to be optimistic about their future and eager to learn and grow.
Population Council focus
Council research aims to identify effective strategies to increase safe mobility and culturally acceptable social opportunities for girls within their communities. In rural and urban settings from Ethiopia to India to Guatemala, the Council has demonstrated the feasibility of creating safe spaces where girls can gather on a regular basis under the leadership of a mentor. These spaces often are the social platform for introducing life skills, financial skills, and savings.
Population Council impact
- In rural Upper Egypt, the Ishraq (“Sunrise”) program reaches out-of-school girls through an intensive program of literacy and life skills, reproductive health, civic engagement, livelihood information, and—unprecedented in Egypt—sports. Ninety-two percent of the girls who completed the pilot program and took the government literacy exam passed.
- In Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the Biruh Tesfa (“Bright Future”) program recruits girls otherwise left out of programming (urban out-of-school girls, many of whom are employed as domestic workers) through door-to-door contact. Over 10,000 girls have participated so far in Addis Ababa and four other Ethiopian cities.
Future directions
After successfully piloting the safe spaces program in a variety of settings, the Council is now involved in scaling up the programs in Egypt and Ethiopia and adapting the lessons learned in a number of new settings.
Biruh Tesfa: Safe Spaces for Out-of-school Girls in Urban Slum Areas of Ethiopia (more)
Biruh Tesfa seeks to protect the rights of vulnerable urban girls by reducing their social isolation and providing them with health information, including HIV prevention, and services to address sexual exploitation and abuse.
(1/2007 - ongoing)
Ethiopia
Creating Opportunities for Mayan Girls and Young Women (more)
This national program is providing the most vulnerable indigenous Mayan girls and young women in Guatemala with personal and professional development skills, mentorship, and leadership opportunities.
(6/2002 - ongoing)
Guatemala
Developing Capacity for Targeted, Evidence-based Programming and Asset Building for Adolescent Girls (more)
The Council is helping to build the capacity of NGOs, UN country teams, and government agencies to develop effective health, social, and economic asset-building programs for adolescent girls.
(1/2008 - ongoing)
Global, Kenya, Liberia
Enhancing the Economic, Health, and Social Capabilities of Highly Vulnerable Youth (more)
"Siyakha Nentsha” (isiZulu for “building with young people”) is responding to the unmet needs of young people in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, and mitigating their daily economic, social ,and health challenges.
(11/2007 - ongoing)
South Africa
Ishraq: Bringing Marginalized Rural Girls into Safe Learning Spaces in Upper Egypt (more)
Launched in 2001, Ishraq, which means “sunrise” in Arabic, seeks to improve the educational, health, and social opportunities for vulnerable girls in rural Upper Egypt.
(1/2001 - ongoing)
Egypt
Assessing Sexual and Reproductive Health Needs and Experiences of Indigenous Youth in Oaxaca (more)
Drawing on lessons from safe spaces programs in other countries, Council researchers will assess the SRH needs of indigenous youth in Oaxaca and pilot a youth empowerment project to improve their SRH, gender equity, and leadership skills.
(1/2009 - 12/2011)
Mexico
Adolescent Safe Spaces, Health, and Skills for Adulthood in Urban Ghana (more)
This safe spaces program will provide 12–15-year-old urban adolescent females in Ghana with social, economic, and health assets.
(1/2009 - 3/2011)
Ghana
Technical Guidance to Strengthen the GOAL Program (more)
The Population Council is working with a community initiative in India that uses sports and education to empower young women to strengthen its content, design, and measurement framework.
(1/2009 - 7/2009)
India
Needs Assessment for Marginalized, Socially Excluded Populations in Johannesburg (more)
Council research is identifying and documenting key social, legal, economic, livelihood, and health-related issues affecting marginalized populations in South Africa.
(10/2007 - 3/2009)
South Africa
Leave No Women Behind: A Program to Support Adolescent Girls and Women in Rural Amhara Region, Ethiopia (more)
In Ethiopia, Council researchers have designed a project that empowers adolescent girls and women by addressing their education, reproductive health, and livelihood needs.
(1/2006 - 12/2008)
Ethiopia
Improving Reproductive Health and HIV Prevention Among Married Adolescents in Amhara, Ethiopia (more)
Council research addressed the particular vulnerabilities of married adolescent girls, taking into account cultural contexts.
(9/2006 - 3/2008)
Ethiopia
Gender, Socioeconomic Status, and Youth HIV Risk (more)
Council researchers explored the effects of gender, poverty, orphanhood, and social isolation on adolescent HIV and pregnancy risk and gender-based violence in South Africa.
(1/2004 - 12/2007)
South Africa
(PDF)
Obare,Francis; Birungi,Harriet; Katahoire,Anne; Nkayivu,Hannington; Kibenge,Aggrey David
Publication date: 2009
Adolescent girls in urban Ethiopia: Vulnerability and opportunity (PDF)
Ferede,Abebaw; Erulkar,Annabel S.
Publication date: 2009
Adolescent Girls Programming and Capacity-building Workshop, Nairobi, Kenya, November 10-14, 2008: Workshop report (PDF)
Publication date: 2009
Program shown to significantly delay child marriage (PDF)
Population Briefs 15(1)
Publication date: 2009
Social exclusion and early or unwanted sexual initiation among poor urban females in Ethiopia (abstract)
Erulkar,Annabel S.; Ferede,Abebaw
International Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health 35(4): 186-193
Publication date: 2009
Biruh Tesfa: Creating a 'Bright Future' for migrant girls in urban areas of Ethiopia (PDF)
Erulkar,Annabel S.; Mekbib,Tekle-Ab; Tegegne,Mesfin
Promoting Healthy, Safe, and Productive Transitions to Adulthood Brief (no. 21)
Publication date: 2008
Building the platform for HIV prevention for adolescent girls (PDF)
presentation at Microbicides 2008, New Delhi, India, 24-27 February
Brady,Martha
Publication date: 2008
Identifying sources of adolescent exclusion due to violence: Participatory mapping in South Africa (PDF)
Kenworthy,Nora; Hallman,Kelly; Diers,Judith A.
Promoting Healthy, Safe, and Productive Transitions to Adulthood Brief (no. 30)
Publication date: 2008
Reaching the girls left behind (abstract)
Bruce,Judith; Hallman,Kelly
Gender and Development 16(2): 227-245
Publication date: 2008
Adolescence in the Kibera slums of Nairobi, Kenya (PDF)
Erulkar,Annabel S.; Matheka,James K.
Publication date: 2007
Améliorer les compétences financières, la sensibilisation sur le VIH/SIDA et les espaces sociaux sûrs parmi la jeunesse vulnérable d'Afrique du Sud (PDF)
Hallman,Kelly; Govender,Kasthuri; Roca,Eva; Pattman,Rob; Mbatha,Emmanuel; Bhana,Deevia
Promouvoir la santé, la sécurité et la productivité transitions vers l'âge adulte Document (n 4 (mis à jour en Septembre 2007))
Publication date: 2007
Bringing new opportunities to adolescent girls in socially conservative settings: The Ishraq program in rural Upper Egypt (PDF)
Brady,Martha; Salem,Abeer; Zibani,Nadia
Promoting Healthy, Safe, and Productive Transitions to Adulthood Brief (no. 12)
Publication date: 2007
Dimensions of girls' vulnerability in rural and urban Ethiopia (PDF)
presentation at the meeting "Gender Dimensions of HIV and Adolescent Programming in Ethiopia," Addis Ababa, 11 April
Erulkar,Annabel S.
Publication date: 2007
Enhancing financial literacy, HIV/AIDS skills, and safe social spaces among vulnerable South African youth (PDF)
Hallman,Kelly; Govender,Kasthuri; Roca,Eva; Pattman,Rob; Mbatha,Emmanuel; Bhana,Deevia
Promoting Healthy, Safe, and Productive Transitions to Adulthood Brief (no. 4)
Publication date: 2007
Equilibrar o campo de jogo: criar programas desportivos femininos no mundo em vias de desenvolvimento [Leveling the playing field: Building girls' sports programs in the developing world] (PDF)
Brady,Martha
Promover transições para a idade adulta saudáveis, seguras e produtivas Sumário (N 1)
Publication date: 2007
Expanding safe spaces and developing skills for adolescent girls (PDF)
Austrian,Karen
Promoting Healthy, Safe, and Productive Transitions to Adulthood Brief (no. 29)
Publication date: 2007
Expandir espaços seguros e desenvolver capacidades para raparigas adolescentes [Expanding safe spaces and developing skills for adolescent girls] (PDF)
Austrian,Karen
Promover transições para a idade adulta saudáveis, seguras e produtivas Sumário (N 29)
Publication date: 2007
From research to action: Programming principles to reach the most out-of-reach (PDF)
presentation at the meeting "Gender Dimensions of HIV and Adolescent Programming in Ethiopia," Addis Ababa, 11 April
Tegegne,Mesfin
Publication date: 2007
Gender inequality
Zibani,Nadia
Sport for Development and Peace International Working Group (SDP IWG)
Publication date: 2007
Girls' adolescence in Burkina Faso: A pivot point for social change (PDF)
Brady,Martha; Saloucou,Lydia; Chong,Erica
Publication date: 2007
Girls left behind: Redirecting HIV interventions toward the most vulnerable (PDF)
Bruce,Judith
Promoting Healthy, Safe, and Productive Transitions to Adulthood Brief (no. 23)
Publication date: 2007
Ishraq program: Intervening before it's too late (PDF)
presentation at the consultation meeting "A Focus on Out-of-school Girls in Rural Areas in Yemen," Sana'a, 13 April
Assaad,Ragui
Publication date: 2007
Jovens abandonadas: redireccionar as intervenções de VIH no sentido das mais vulneráveis [Girls left behind: Redirecting HIV interventions toward the most vulnerable] (PDF)
Bruce,Judith
Promover transições para a idade adulta saudáveis, seguras e produtivas Sumário (N 23)
Publication date: 2007
Las niñas rezagadas: dirigir las intervenciones de VIH hacia las más vulnerables [Girls left behind: Redirecting HIV interventions toward the most vulnerable] (PDF)
Bruce,Judith
Promoción de transiciones a la vida adulta sanas, seguras y productivas Resumen (N 23)
Publication date: 2007
Leave no woman behind, Ethiopia: Baseline report (PDF)
Erulkar,Annabel S.; Mekbib,Tekle-Ab; Amdemikael,Helen; Conille,Garry
Publication date: 2007
Les filles sont oubliées : rediriger les interventions en matière de VIH vers les plus vulnérables [Girls left behind: Redirecting HIV interventions toward the most vulnerable] (PDF)
Bruce,Judith
Promouvoir la santé, la sécurité et la productivité transitions vers l'âge adulte Document (N 23)
Publication date: 2007
Leveling the playing field: Building girls' sports programs in the developing world (PDF)
Brady,Martha
Promoting Healthy, Safe, and Productive Transitions to Adulthood Brief (no. 1)
Publication date: 2007
Providing new opportunities to adolescent girls in socially conservative settings: The Ishraq program in rural Upper Egypt--full report (PDF)
Brady,Martha; Assaad,Ragui; Ibrahim,Barbara L.; Salem,Abeer; Salem,Rania; Zibani,Nadia
Publication date: 2007
Reaching the girls left behind: Targeting adolescent programming for equity, social inclusion, health, and poverty alleviation (PDF)
prepared for "Financing Gender Equality: A Commonwealth Perspective," Commonwealth Women's Affairs Ministers' Meeting, Uganda, June
Bruce,Judith
Publication date: 2007
Reducing the social exclusion of girls (PDF)
Hallman,Kelly; Roca,Eva
Promoting Healthy, Safe, and Productive Transitions to Adulthood Brief (no. 27)
Publication date: 2007
Reducir la exclusión social des las niñas [Reducing the social exclusion of girls] (PDF)
Hallman,Kelly; Roca,Eva
Promoción de transiciones a la vida adulta sanas, seguras y productivas Resumen (N 27)
Publication date: 2007
The girls left behind: Out of the box and out of reach (PDF)
presentation at the meeting "Gender Dimensions of HIV and Adolescent Programming in Ethiopia," Addis Ababa, 11 April
Bruce,Judith
Publication date: 2007
The Ishraq program in Egypt (PDF)
presentation at the consultation meeting "A Focus on Out-of-school Girls in Rural Areas in Yemen," Sana'a, 13 April
Assaad,Ragui
Publication date: 2007
The Ishraq Program: Reshaping gender norms in rural upper Egypt (PDF)
Salem,Abeer; Zibani,Nadia
ISSBD Newsletter 52(2): 1-5
Publication date: 2007
Biruh Tesfa ('bright future'): A program for poor, urban girls at risk of exploitation and abuse in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (PDF)
program brief
Publication date: 2006
Ishraq expands horizons for girls in rural Upper Egypt (PDF)
Population Briefs 12(2)
Publication date: 2006
Providing new opportunities to adolescent girls in socially conservative settings: The Ishraq program in rural Upper Egypt (PDF)
Brady,Martha; Assaad,Ragui; Ibrahim,Barbara L.; Salem,Abeer; Salem,Rania; Zibani,Nadia
Publication date: 2006
Providing new opportunities to adolescent girls in socially conservative settings: The Ishraq program in rural Upper Egypt [Arabic] (PDF)
Brady,Martha; Assaad,Ragui; Ibrahim,Barbara L.; Salem,Abeer; Salem,Rania; Zibani,Nadia
Publication date: 2006
The girls left behind: The failed reach of current schooling, child health, youth-serving, and livelihoods programs for girls living in the path of HIV
Bruce,Judith; Haberland,Nicole; Chong,Erica; Grant,Monica J.; Joyce,Amy
policy paper
Publication date: 2006
Building assets for safe, productive lives: A report on a workshop on adolescent girls' livelihoods, 7-8 April 2004 (PDF)
Publication date: 2005
Creating safe spaces and building social assets for young women in the developing world: A new role for sports
Brady,Martha
Women's Studies Quarterly 33(1/2): 35-49
Publication date: 2005
Gender and sport: Mainstreaming gender in sports projects (PDF)
Sever,Charlie
Publication date: 2005
Ishraq project update (PDF)
Ishraq: Safe Spaces to Learn, Play and Grow, Briefing Sheet (no. 5)
Publication date: 2004
Ishraq project update [Arabic] (PDF)
Ishraq: Safe Spaces to Learn, Play and Grow, Briefing Sheet (no. 5)
Publication date: 2004
Ishraq: Safe spaces to learn, play and grow: Expansion of recreational sports program for adolescent rural girls in Egypt (PDF)
Zibani,Nadia
Ishraq: Safe Spaces for Girls to Learn, Play and Grow, Program Document
Publication date: 2004
Letting girls play: Breaking down barriers in rural Egypt through sports (PDF)
Ishraq: Safe Spaces to Learn, Play and Grow, Briefing Sheet (no. 6)
Publication date: 2004
Letting girls play: Breaking down barriers in rural Egypt through sports [Arabic] (PDF)
Ishraq: Safe Spaces to Learn, Play and Grow, Briefing Sheet (no. 6)
Publication date: 2004
A 3-year intervention research project for out of school girls in four villages in Minya, Upper Egypt. A cadre of local young women serving as role models for disadvantaged rural girls in upper Egypt [Arabic] (PDF)
Safe Spaces to Learn, Play and Grow (Ishraq) Briefing Sheet (no. 4)
Publication date: 2003
Safe spaces for adolescent girls (PDF)
Brady,Martha
from Adolescent and Youth Sexual and Reproductive Health: Charting Directions for a Second Generation of Programming-Background Documents for the Meeting, pp. 155-176
Publication date: 2003
An innovative youth program focuses on rural, out-of-school girls (PDF)
Ishraq: Safe Spaces to Learn, Play, and Grow, Briefing Sheet (no. 2)
Publication date: 2002
An innovative youth program focuses on rural, out-of-school girls [Arabic] (PDF)
Ishraq: Safe Spaces to Learn, Play, and Grow, Briefing Sheet (no. 2)
Publication date: 2002
How community structures of time and opportunity shape adolescent sexual behavior in South Africa (PDF)
Kaufman,Carol E.; Shelley,Clark; Manzini,Ntsiki; May,Julian
Policy Research Division Working Paper (no. 159)
Publication date: 2002
Letting Girls Play: The Mathare Youth Sports Association's Football Program for Girls (PDF)
Brady,Martha; Khan,Arjmand Banu
Publication date: 2002
Letting Girls Play: The Mathare Youth Sports Association's Football Program for Girls [Arabic] (PDF)
Brady,Martha; Khan,Arjmand Banu
Publication date: 2002
Gender roles sharply differentiated among Egyptian youth [Arabic] (PDF)
Population Briefs 7(2)
Publication date: 2001
Safe spaces to learn, play and grow (Ishraq) (PDF)
Ishraq: Safe Spaces to Learn, Play and Grow, Briefing Sheet (no. 1)
Publication date: 2001
Safe spaces to learn, play and grow (Ishraq) [Arabic] (PDF)
Ishraq: Safe Spaces to Learn, Play and Grow, Briefing Sheet (no. 1)
Publication date: 2001
Caught between two worlds: Youth in the Egyptian hinterland
Ibrahim,Barbara L.; Wassef,Hind; Meijer,Roel
from Alienation or Integration: Arab Youth Between Family, the State and the Street
Publication date: 1999
The changing nature of adolescence in the Kassena-Nankana District of northern Ghana (abstract) (PDF)
Mensch,Barbara S.; Bagah,Daniel; Clark,Wesley H.; Binka,Fred N.
Studies in Family Planning 30(2): 95-111
Publication date: 1999
What's New
- Council staff in Ethiopia presented results of research at a meeting, "Marginalization and the adolescent experience in poor urban areas of Ethiopia," in Addis Ababa on 9 March 2010. (PDF)
- Biruh Tesfa ("Bright Future") provides safe spaces for out-of-schools in urban slum areas in Ethiopia. Learn more about it by watching a video on our multimedia page. (more)
- The current issue of Momentum highlights Council initiatives in Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America, where we are reaching marginalized girls with programs for education and economic and social growth. (PDF)
- Biruh Tesfa ("Bright Future") is the subject of a recent story on The Huffington Post. (offsite link) (more)
- New project: Developing Capacity for Targeted, Evidence-based Programming and Asset Building for Adolescent Girls (more)
- Abriendo Oportunidadas is a leadership and empowerment program in Guatemala that teaches girls life, entrepreneurial, and leadership skills, and provides information about reproductive health. Visit our multimedia section to watch a video about this successful program. (more)
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