Evaluation of Marketing Interventions in Colombia

Study Overview
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Brief Summary
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The proposed project seeks to implement a cluster-randomized controlled trial (RCT) to measure the impact of increasing women´s incomes and providing gender equality trainings on women´s empowerment and risk of intimate partner violence (IPV) in Colombia. This project will be the first in Latin America to evaluate rigorously the impact of a marketing intervention, alone and combined with IPV prevention training. The knowledge generated from this evaluation has the potential to identify the most effective solutions to empower women, as well as to drive transformative change in current approaches to reduce IPV and promote gender equality in highly vulnerable populations in Colombia, and worldwide.

Detailed Description
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The proposed project seeks to implement a cluster-randomized controlled trial (RCT) to measure the impact of increasing women´s incomes and providing gender equality trainings on women´s empowerment and risk of intimate partner violence (IPV) in Colombia. This project will be the first in Latin America to evaluate rigorously the impact of a marketing intervention, alone and combined with IPV prevention training. The knowledge generated from this evaluation has the potential to identify the most effective solutions to empower women, as well as to drive transformative change in current approaches to reduce IPV and promote gender equality in highly vulnerable populations in Colombia, and worldwide. The goal of the project is to estimate the impact of generating livelihood opportunities and providing gender-based violence (GBV) training to reduce IPV among women in Colombia. This will generate much needed evidence on the most effective approach to empower women smallholder farmers and reduce their exposure to IPV. Investigators will conduct a cluster randomized controlled trial targeting approximately 100 smallholder farmers' associations and approximately 2700 women. Results will inform and strengthen future programming of humanitarian assistance and can be replicated in humanitarian interventions in other parts of the world. The experimental operational research will compare two programmatic modalities and their impact on women's risk of exposure to IPV, against a comparison group where no intervention takes place. The modalities will include: (1) providing a stable income for women, and (2) providing a stable income and IPV trainings to women. The evaluation will take place in five departments: Cauca, Valle de Cauca, Meta, Caquetá, and Nariño.

Official Title
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Evaluation Of The Effect Of Marketing Interventions For Women On Economic Empowerment And Risk Of Intimate Partner Violence In Colombia

Conditions
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Gender Based Violence, Intimate Partner Violence

Intervention / Treatment
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* Other: Smallholder Marketing
* Other: Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) Prevention Training


Participation Criteria
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Eligibility Criteria
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Inclusion Criteria: Women currently married or living together with a man as if married Males or females who are active within the farmer's association are eligible to participate Exclusion Criteria: Women who have a husband/partner who is living elsewhere permanently

Ages Eligible for Study
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Minimum Age: 18 Years
Maximum Age: 60 Years

Sexes Eligible for Study
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All

Accepts Healthy Volunteers
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No

Study Plan
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How is the study designed?
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Design Details

Primary Purpose: Other
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention Model: Parallel Assignment
Interventional Model Description: The randomization occurs at the farmer's association level.
Masking: None (Open Label)


Arms and Interventions

| Participant Group/Arm | Intervention/Treatment |
| --- | --- |
| Experimental: Treatment Group 1<br>Farmers associations, including men and women, will be randomized to receive the smallholder marketing intervention. | Other: Smallholder Marketing<br>* The smallholder marketing intervention involves product purchasing (e.g., bananas, beans, goats, eggs) from smallholder farmers' associations through WFP's large procurement procedures. WFP is will also provide technical training on topics such as sustainable farming practices, quality control, and business practices.<br>|
| Experimental: Treatment Group 2<br>Farmers associations, including men and women, will be randomized to receive the smallholder marketing intervention combined with the intimate partner violence (IPV) prevention training. | Other: Smallholder Marketing<br>* The smallholder marketing intervention involves product purchasing (e.g., bananas, beans, goats, eggs) from smallholder farmers' associations through WFP's large procurement procedures. WFP is will also provide technical training on topics such as sustainable farming practices, quality control, and business practices.<br>Other: Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) Prevention Training<br>* IPV prevention training involves 24 hours of gender training (gender equality and rights, economic empowerment, gender-based violence prevention), and 8 hours of nutrition and food security training (with a focus on gender).<br>|
| No Intervention: Comparison Group 3<br>Women involved with farmers's associations that work independently of World Food Programmes (WFP's) assistance. | |

What is the study measuring?
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Primary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Incidence Physical and/or Sexual IPV | The number of new physical and/or sexual IPV encounters as reported in the study survey. | Post-Baseline (12 Months) | 
| Change in Prevalence of Physical and/or Sexual IPV | The difference in the number of physical or sexual IPV encounters between baseline and post intervention as reported in the study survey. | Baseline, End-Line (12 Months Post Intervention) | 

Secondary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Incidence Physical IPV | The number of new physical IPV encounters reported. | Post-Baseline (12 Months) | 
| Incidence Sexual IPV | The number of new sexual IPV encounters as reported in the study survey. | Post-Baseline (12 Months) | 
| Incidence Psychological IPV | The number of new physiological IPV encounters as reported in the study survey. | Post-Baseline (12 Months) | 
| Incidence Economic Coercion | The number of new encounters of economic coercion as reported in the study survey. | Post-Baseline (12 Months) | 
| Change in Prevalence of Physical IPV | The difference in the number of physical IPV encounters between baseline and post intervention as reported in the study survey. | Baseline, End-Line (12 Months Post Intervention) | 
| Change in Prevalence of Sexual IPV | The difference in the number of sexual IPV encounters between baseline and post intervention as reported in the study survey. | Baseline, End-Line (12 Months Post Intervention) | 
| Change in Prevalence of Psychological IPV | The difference in the number of psychological IPV encounters between baseline and post intervention as reported in the study survey. | Baseline, End-Line (12 Months Post Intervention) | 
| Change in Prevalence of Economic Coercion | The difference in the number of economic coercion encounters between baseline and post intervention as reported in the study survey. | Baseline, End-Line (12 Months Post Intervention) |