Making Public Works Work for Women and Young Children: Djibouti Case Study Joana Silva, LCSHS
Why public works and gender? Why Djibouti? Public works programs are a popular social safety net instrument, providing cash- or food-for-work. But if the additional income does not reach the mother and child, they may fail to ensure healthy child development with potential long-term consequences. Djibouti developed an innovative program that reaches to women and links employment creation opportunities to improvement of nutrition practices 2
Key questions Workfare programs and other crisis interventions can address more effectively the transmission mechanisms of a crisis and protect the child s development by reaching to women and children. What is the Djibouti experience in this domain? (1) What were the key design features of the Djibouti workfare plus nutrition program? (2) What were the challenges faced by the Djibouti program in pursuing this approach? What were the key factors for making it work? (3) Can lesson be learned from the Djibouti experience on workfare for other types of interventions such as CCTs, in-kind transfers, parenting support, etc.? In what context? 3
1. The Djibouti Workfare Plus Nutrition Program: Key Design Features 4
The challenge - Djibouti identified malnutrition and unemployment as key HD challenges. - Djibouti lacked a SSN that could be scaled up in response to 2008 crisis. Government responded quickly but focused on food delivery (supply side). - Need to address the demand side was felt, but traditional SSN were not sufficient Fig 1: Prevalence of Wasting Relative to GDP Per Capita While workfare programs could provide income support, they would not decrease chronic malnutrition caused by lack of means, as well as poor nutrition practices.
Program objectives The program supports a crisis response that provides the basis for a (productive) safety net by: Improving the design and effectiveness of a public works program so it becomes an effective social safety net, Generating new short-term job opportunities for the poor and vulnerable; and Improving nutrition practices among participating households through behavioral change.
Program approach The program adds a nutrition and growth promotion component to the traditional cash-for-work program to leverage the effect of the additional income on the family's nutritional status, through behavior change. The program targets poor and vulnerable households with young children and/or pregnant women. Beneficiaries build community assets as part of the social safety net (SSN). Translates knowledge into an innovative project-design and makes it work, with the first SSN project on the ground and its scale-up (at the national-level) under way.
Program activities
Gender aspects In the community-driven workfare: o o Community services are reserved to women. Women have priority in community works. If they do not want to participate, they will nominate another household member. Payments for the community-driven workfare are automatically processed to a Bank account. If women participate, the account will be opened in their name. Choice of works and services followed intensive focus groups discussions, and are gender sensitive. Works prioritization is made in a participative process involving women. Sensitization for program participation reached to community leaders (male and female). 9
Gender aspects (cont.) Nutrition component focus on: o o o Pregnant women: Four antenatal consults including one in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy, consumption of iron/folate tablets, consumption of a nutritious diet, assisted delivery, etc. Lactating women: Optimal infant feeding practices, post natal consults, iron/folate supplementation for at least 3 months after delivery, breastfeeding support and promotion of consumption of a nutritious diet and post partum vitamin A supplementation. Children 0 2 years old: Early initiation and exclusive breastfeeding up to the age of 6 months, proper introduction of nutritious complementary foods at 6 months, complete vaccination, regular growth monitoring, micronutrient supplementation, use of food supplements during the lean season. 10
Gender aspects (cont.) Nutrition component activities: o Monthly community meetings: - Include behavior change communication and cooking demonstrations - A community agent supervises these meetings. A Health agent provides complementary health care (e.g., micronutrient distribution, etc.). - A Mom "role model" provides peer support in the form of mentoring o Bi-weekly household visits by community agents - Tracks emergency signs and provides advice on good child caring practices, household hygiene and sanitation, referral and encourages the parents to use health services. 11
2. Key constraints and obstacles, and success factors for making it work 12
Constraints and obstacles Shift in mindset away from status quo (e.g. from curative to preventive approach of malnutrition) requires consensus building. This might delay program implementation. Implementing combined intervention from different ministries, who are more used to implement programs by themselves, can be harder. New design involves trade-offs (e.g. targeting) New components may increase program cost Catalogue for choosing the potential types of works becomes more restricted. Adjustments to existing (or creation of new) administrative systems (targeting and payment systems, etc.) and investments in training and capacity building are needed. 13
Success factors: Making it work Government ownership and commitment at high levels An effective partnership was established, with increased discussion and dialogue for improved multi-sectoral collaboration. Strong investment in capacity building and advocacy Building on existing infrastructure of community-based public works Utilization of the intervention as a platform to develop SSN system s infrastructure (M&E, MIS, targeting, data collection, GIS). Used multiple ways of building incountry capacity including study tours, videos, blogs, workshops, international experience showcases, on-demand seminars, and training. Framed on community needs, intense dialogue and focus group 14 discussions.
3. Lessons for other types of Social Safety Net programs 15
Lessons learned Team commitment, pragmatic approach, proximity to the beneficiary communities are the most important elements of success. The dedication and belief the Djibouti Social Assistance Ministry and ADDS teams that the combination of workfare and nutrition could actually work, was cost-effective, and focus on preventive care was important to improve nutritional behaviors were key. Building on solid data and global experience can help innovate. The Djibouti Government before starting the project reviewed international experience, and visited and got inspired many different programs. Understand a country s most pressing human development challenges is key to inform program design. knowledge/diagnostics of key challenges and how they are are being addressed can inform new program design. 16
Lessons learned (cont.) Expansion of activities in a pragmatic way and linked with the needs of the operations on the ground increases likelihood of success. The program started smaller, in a pilot form, as is being expanded progressively. Importance of multi-sectoral coordination. The Ministry of Health, Urbanism, Women, are key partners and need to be engaged from the beginning. Prioritizing interventions that promote investment in human capital can increase impact of social assistance programs. Build evidence on whether the program works and what makes it work is important for scaling up. The impact evaluation of the program and MIS systems will help track results and adjust program in Djibouti. 17
Lessons learned (cont.) Continuous technical support is important to enhance implementation capacity, particularly when programs includes innovative components and require multi-sectoral approaches. Capacity building for higher levels of government is essential to promote intersectoral collaboration and coordination by using South-South exchanges and broad based consultation and participatory approach in project design. Strong emphasis on advocacy and sensitization at the central and local levels promotes project take-up by communities. Showing results leads to increased donor coordination and donor effectiveness and community mobilization leads to increased participation by the community on school maintenance and ownership. Use of NGOs and CBOs improves delivery of services and increases outreach and take up of program activities. 18
Lessons learned (cont.) Programs can be a platform for system building. The use of the program as a platform to develop a sound infrastructure (Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E), Management Information System (MIS), targeting, data collection, GIS) is instrumental for building a national SSN system. Consensus and sensitization around the program objectives is needed to establish targeting. It is important to have: (i) a clear agreement at the political level on the targeting method for selecting and registering beneficiaries associated with the national registry; and (ii) readiness of benefits payment prior to card distribution. 19
Thank you! 20