IMAGE Program (South Africa)
Problems addressed
Violence against women
Effectiveness

Effective

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Effective

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Life periods served
Teenagers (14 to 17 years)
Where the program was applied
Community (streets or community centers)
Country of application
South Africa
Description

The Intervention with Microfinance for AIDS and Gender Equity (IMAGE) program (better known as “IMAGE”) is an intervention that has employed an integrated approach between microcredit initiatives focused on poverty reduction (with special attention to the poorest women in the communities). It has a participatory social empowerment component that includes 10 “transformative” group sessions, as well as community actions related to gender issues, violence, and gender and AIDS education initiatives.

Impact evaluations

A Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) found that women served by the program experienced less intimate partner violence. However, there was no change in unprotected sex with non-marital partners or HIV incidence in the community [1].
There was a 55% decrease in the incidence of intimate partner violence, and women reported less controlling behavior by their partners.

Bibliographic reference

[1] Pronyk, P. M., Hargreaves, J. R., Kim, J. C., Morison, L. A., Phetla, G., Watts, C., ... & Porter, J. D. (2006). Effect of a structural intervention for the prevention of intimate-partner violence and HIV in rural South Africa: a cluster randomised trial. The lancet, 368(9551), 1973-1983. https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(06)6974…

Information source