Research Description

Using a participatory mixed methods approach, the research investigates and looks to produce much-needed evidence on the relationship between gender, agency, and education in conflict-affected contexts. The aim is to identify the gendered differences between girls and boys in both agency and education participation to directly support interventions that aim to remove educational barriers for girls. The project supports the development of complex programming that responds to the intersection of conflict, gender, and education.

Main research question

What is the relationship between the agency of adolescents (aged 11-19 years), especially girls, and their experience of primary education in conflict-affected settings of Mopti and Ségou, Mali?

Sub research questions

1. What components of agency are most important to adolescent girls and boys?

2. How does agency influence adolescent girls’ and boys’ participation in primary education?

3. How does adolescent girls’ and boys’ participation in primary education influence their agency?

4. How does the relationship between agency and experiences of primary education in conflict-affected settings differ between adolescent girls and boys?

5. How do adolescents in formal and non-formal education in conflict-affected settings experience agency differently?

6. How does the quality of primary education received by adolescent girls and boys influence their agency?

This three-year project complements Plan International's IMAGINE program, a large education in emergencies program expected to be implemented in Mopti and Ségou. The research design entails both qualitative and quantitative approaches. The qualitative approach uses child-friendly arts-based and participatory methods such as drawing and cellphilming, while a quantitative survey builds on adolescents’ insight into agency and education on a larger scale. The project will generate valuable findings, namely in the Francophone context, to inform policy and practice related to education and gender equality in conflict-affected settings in Mali and beyond. Findings, considered a public good, will be shared freely and widely at international, regional, and national levels through the applicants’ numerous networks, partnerships, and communication platforms.

Through this research project all participating partners aim to engage adolescent participants as active research partners and co- producers of knowledge. PREAM prioritizes the elevation of local voices, particularly adolescent girls, in shaping data collection instruments and analysis and participants will learn, by experience, how research is conducted, analysed, and communicated with policy makers.

The interdisciplinary project is housed in the Institute for Human Development and Well-being.