Location: Malawi
Grantee: Art and Global Health Centre Africa (ArtGlo)
Grant period: January 2020 to May 2023
Grant amount: USD 380,297
Authors/editors: Charlotte Thomas Consulting Firm
Publication year: 2023
The “Make Art for Women’s Activism” (MAWA) project, funded by the UN Trust Fund, was implemented in Malawi by Art and Global Health Centre Africa (ArtGlo) from January 2020 to March 2023. It aimed to:
- impact 5,000 women and girls, as well as 50 women with disabilities and 50 lesbian, bisexual, transgender and intersex individuals in Blantyre, Phalombe, Mulanje, Chikhwawa, Chiradzulu and Zomba districts in Malawi;
- address intimate partner sexual and physical violence, non-partner sexual violence, and the harmful practice of early and child marriage;
- improve prevention of violence against women and girls (VAW/G) in Malawi by challenging negative social norms and effecting changes in behaviour, practices and attitudes; and
- improve the lives of women and girls by mainstreaming women’s empowerment.
The final evaluation recognized some limitations of the project, but found that it was effective and improved the situation for women and girls in their communities.
Main findings of the evaluation:
- More than 80% of beneficiaries found the project challenged norms and practices that negatively affect women and girls.
- Over 76% of community members, the primary beneficiaries, believed the situation for women and girls in their communities had improved after the MAWA intervention, that the incidence of VAW/G had reduced, and that women felt safer and better able to challenge and address VAW/G.
- The project was found to be sustainable as it provided practical examples, identified by the project beneficiaries, on how the positive changes can be maintained and increased.