Questioning gender norms to promote SRH among early adolescents: Evidences from a school program in Mumbai, India

Concepts of sexuality and health find their roots in the notions of gender, thinking on masculinity and femininity, attitude towards the opposite sex, and validation of the use of violence – all of which set-in early through various socialization processes. This paper presents findings from an operations research Gender Equity Movement in Schools (GEMS). It was conducted in 45 schools with adolescent aged 12-14 years and reached to over 8000. Using gender transformative approach, the intervention included group education activities (GEA) and campaign, which were developed based on a formative research. A total of 909 students participated in baseline and 2nd follow-up survey. In addition, indepth interviews were conducted with 60 students. Multivariate analysis reveals that students who participated in GEA were significantly more likely to support gender equitable attitude, higher education and delay age at marriage for girls, and oppose violence compared to those with no intervention. Further, students from intervention arms reported being more confident in protesting and complaining in case of sexual violence. Evidences suggest the need to engage young children in discussions around fundamental constructions to shifts norms that in turn influence attitudes and behaviors underlying outcomes related to sexuality and health.