Lesson-148933-5

The use of the holistic approach. Unlike many projects, She Thrives approached the problem of child labor from multiple angles. The project recognized from the outset that child labor is an issue caused by multiple interconnected factors, and attempts to address child labor should also address these factors. That is why She Thrives addressed not only the children who are engaged in or are vulnerable to child labor but also the household members through one or more of its interventions. For example, whereas adult women are engaged in Village Savings and Loan Associations and income-generating activities, adolescent girls and boys are participants of technical and vocational training and apprenticeships. Additionally, out-of-school children attended the accelerated education program and now most are in regular schools. Apart from building the participants' agency and developing their self-esteem and confidence through building their capacity, the project has worked on relationships between men and women. Because of this work, there is better understanding and communication within the participant households, which facilitated healthy communication among household members. She Thrives also attempted to improve the structures and policies by engaging the relevant government ministries and offices from federal to district levels. The success of She Thrives, the evaluation team understands, stems from the project’s use of the holistic approach that helped to address child labor from multiple angles. This promising practice should be shared with other projects for scaling up/replication.