Young Lives experiences in mainstreaming children into Ethiopia’s national poverty reduction strategy

1. Young Lives experiences in mainstreaming children into Ethiopia’s national poverty reduction strategy Nicola Jones (SCUK London) Bekele Tefera (SCUK Ethiopia) Tassew Woldehanna (Dep. Of economics, AAU, Ethiopia ) For SARPN Workshop 20-21 November 2006, Pretoria, SA

2. Presentation format • ingredients of success • Quality evidence • Intent matters • Policy and advocacy environment • Networking and identifying key players • Framing research messages • Aligning MDG and PRSP • Conclusions: lessons learned

3. Mainstreaming children into national poverty strategies • This presentation draws on research to evaluate efforts made by YL in Ethiopia to look at the impact of PRSP I (SDPRP) on child welfare • IDRC grant was given to assess impacts of PRSP I (2002-5) on child well-being: structured around MDG themes: education, nutrition and child labour • We also carried out child-sensitive critiques of PRSP I and compare it with other 10 countries

4. Mainstreaming children into national poverty strategies • It was an 18 months program involving • Multi-disciplinary mixed method research: economists, sociologist, political scientists and use of Q2 • Quantitative analysis of YL first round data with 3000 children • New qualitative data (sub sample of 20 sites) • Analysis of national and sub national policy framework and implementation practices • Develop video documentary and photograph projects • We engaged in multi-pronged communication, dissemination: seminars with key stakeholders; capacity building workshops with national and state level policy practitioners • Coincides with development of PRSP II (PASDEP)

6. Ingredients for success • Literature on research and policy influencing has identified a # of key ingredients (Court and Maxwell, 2005): • Importance of credible quality research • Intent to shape policy • Understanding the socio-political context of research up-take • Identifying and networking with key actors • Importance of context-appropriate framing of messages • We have evaluated our efforts to mainstream children in national PRS based these 5 criteria.

7. Quality evidence • In Young Lives project, we have sought to ensure quality of the research across 3 dimensions: research sample, integration of quantitative and qualitative methods, analysis from multidisciplinary perspectives • Research sample • 3000 households in five most-populous regions: cover wide diversity of agro-ecologocal zone, livelihood pattern, cultural and religious traditions, human deve. levels and ethnic compositions • Qual. Using sub sample • Integrating quantitative and qualitative methods • Quantitative (econometrics): Aggregating determinants of childhood poverty • Qualitative research provides richer definition of poverty, provides us a greater explanation of the results obtained from quant, which otherwise looks counter institutive. E.g. education, child labour, caring younger sibling • Multi-disciplinary analysis • Involve economists, political scientists, sociologist. And anthropologists • Helps us to provide convincing cases to wider audience • Econometric analysis provided currency in the language of power (MF, WB) • Contextual sociological analysis (in-depth case studies) enables us to translate the more technical analysis into a more compelling human-cantered narrative • Hence it enables us to reach broader civil society and public audience,

8. Intent matters • Through the process of Knowledge creep, research may reach policy stakeholders (Crew et al., 2005), perhaps by chance. However, this will take more time and it may not be timely. Message may not reach in a way we want them. • But research explicitly designed to influence policy will have better chance of success than research that relies upon chance or accident to shape policy (Saxena, 2005). • Understanding this, YL partnership is designed with DFID’s spirit of getting research to users and beneficiaries • YL is a partnership project between research consortium and an international NGO aimed at explicitly producing policy-relevant research in order to improve policies that will enhance child welfare. The same at country level • Our research initially aimed to critically look at PRSP I and influence PRSP II • Time constraints: we had to finish our working paper and conduct dissemination before government’s drafting deadline

9. Context: Ethiopian policy context • In order to engage effectively with policy makers and practitioners, it is important to understand how policy decisions are made; who have the more political power, and which issues are politically sensitive. • Hence see if the policy process consultative or technocratic. • What is the balance of power among key political institutions? Where are the best points of entry for dialogue and influence? • Are Civil society-state relationship constructive/complementary or antagonistic? • Ethiopia: • disproportionate influence of MoFED (sector ministries) technocrats • limited civil society consultations in PRSPI process; • limited awareness of need for child-sensitive development policies among CSOs • Government was well aware of child rights • Donors have a negotiation power with the GO

10. Context: Ethiopian policy context • Elections – strain civil society-state relations and overshadow PRSP consultations • Which one to approach CSO or MoFED and how to do with Donors? • Dilemma of seeking path of greatest influence versus solidarity with local civil society • Be more flexible and use situation specific approach • Importance of cooperative but separate identity for research-policy initiatives • We learned to advocate separately : CSO, Donor and GO • And conduct dissemination at the very local level

11. Identifying and networking with key players • Experience tells us that research result has to be owned by GO, community and the public at large • In Ethiopia this issue was handled by making the research be housed under EDRI and dissemination by SCUK and MOLSA and all get guidance by advisory panel (PRSP technical committee chairperson members and representative of NGOs and CSOs). • YL strategy of promoting stakeholder buy-in • Government partners • Advisory panel • Formal and informal discussion with key decision-makers get advice on how to disseminate • We involved people from advisory panel in the dissemination at national and local level • We have leaned also to • work with sector ministries and make child mainstreaming be presented by sector ministries to MOFED; • and use known but politically independent (by the eyes of GO) academicians and researchers

12. Framing research messages • Culturally and audience-appropriate discursive tactics • Use of international standards and conventions • Construction of pithy but not overly simplified messages • Borrowing from the language of gender mainstreaming • Proactively teasing out policy implications from research messages • e.g. ADLI may result into child labour ; hence child labour as to be monitored over time • Specificity of policy-related messages • Productive safety net example

13. Linking MDG to PRSP • Young Lives has not face problem in the regards • During PRSP I GO started to link it • Wrote report • UNDP provide awareness workshops • GO is very positive on MDG • PRSP II already worked with MDG • Young Lives choose it research topics around MDG themes

15. Conclusions: lessons • Need for flexible advocacy and dissemination strategies • Research-based advocacy can help to by-pass “the political” • Critiques are palatable if backed by evidence from a large, diverse sample • E.g. PANE versus YL

16. New lessons cont. • Importance of sustainability of researcher/ advocacy linkages • Can build on credibility rather than establishing anew for each research endeavour • Proactively fostering research ownership through a “stakeholder as partner” model • Invite policy-makers to present on your topic • Capacity building as a tool to shape the politico-institutional context • Civil society, weak political institutions, media

17. New lessons cont. • PRSP is the main national development plan • Federal GOs • NGOs • Sub-national GO • Ordinary people