“Villagers used to complain to the parents if they saw any girl with an unknown boy. Girls were not allowed to go outside of their home, let alone going for grocery alone... Parents are now allowing their girl child to go anywhere outside of their home. Now girls are allowed to go for grocery. This perception has been changed due to the project.”
Funded by the Kendeda Fund, the Tipping Point Initiative addresses root causes of child, early, and forced marriage (CEFM) in Nepal and Bangladesh. The project focuses on identifying the root causes of CEFM and innovative strategies to create alternative paths for adolescent girls. The project aims to contribute to the global understanding of root cause of child marriage and strategies that contribute to a “tipping point” of change. The three years of Tipping Point’s Phase 1 had a total budget of $7.7 million and reached approximately 7,000 people in Bangladesh and approximately 1,400 people in Nepal.
Tipping Point partnered with Siddartha Samuyadayik Samaj and Dalit Social Development Center in Nepal, and Action for Social Development and Jaintia Shinnomul Songsthain in Bangladesh.
What did we accomplish?
- Girls used new understanding of their rights to dream bigger. Girls developed aspirations for more equitable future relationships and desired careers. This increased confidence also translated into girls successfully confronting parents about early marriage.
- Boys challenged gender norms and became advocates for girls. In several cases, boys helped their sisters avoid marriage, stay in school and started helping in household chores.
- Parents developed better relationships with their adolescent children. Parents engaged in more dialogue with children and increased their support of daughters’ autonomy and education.
- Project staff engaged in their own transformation and became leaders in the community for gender equity. Project staff reflected on the gender norms in their society and chose to change perceptions and behaviors in their own lives, making their work with communities more meaningful and credible.
How did we get there?
- Synchronized groups of girls, boys, mothers, fathers, and other influential people tackled issues in safe spaces (i.e. same-sex and same-age groups) but also reflected together. These groups served as a platform for core intervention components, such as gender equality, financial literacy, and adolescent and youth sexual and reproductive health. The groups also provided a safe space for girls to build relationships and solidarity.
- Social Norms-focused Community Events. In partnership with the adolescent girls’ groups, Tipping Point hosted events that deliberately pushed the boundaries of what is considered acceptable for girls and boys, and men and women. These public-facing activities were designed with communities to challenge existing norms and shift them towards new, positive norms.
- Intergroup dialogues facilitated important conversations. As a result, parents and adolescents reported feeling closer and parents respected the opinions of their children more than before.
- Staff transformation was encouraged through an innovative ongoing reflective modules throughout the length of the project.
What did we learn?
- Even the strongest social norms can be loosened over time. Most norms shifted somewhat towards greater acceptance by society of girls’ rights, but with conditions. For example, some girls were allowed to spend time with boys during Tipping Point activities, but not outside of organized events. Change takes time and Tipping Point is playing a part in this process.
- Allies emerge from unlikely places. Several surprising supporters of Tipping Point emerged. Certain religious leaders were one such group. In one Tipping Point Community, a Muslim scholar and Hindu scholar worked together to try to eliminate child marriage by using their influential positions.
- Change can be fun. Many activities cited as impactful during the evaluation were norm-bending competitions and games, such as football tournaments for girls, street dramas, and cooking competitions for men.
Where do we go next?
Tipping Point Phase 2 (2017-2020) uses learnings from Phase 1 to implement and test a holistic implementation package with a strong foundation in addressing social norms underlying CEFM. Tipping Point’s approach is rooted in challenging repressive social norms and facilitating girl-driven movement building. Phase 2 implementation has launched, and the randomized control trial results will be published in 2022.