Final Evaluation: En comunidad, prevenimos y respondemos ante la violencia sexual y el embarazo infantil, en 12 municipios de México (Mexico)

Location: Mexico  

Grantee: Equidad de Género: Ciudadanía, Trabajo y Familia A.C.  

Grant period: May 2021–November 2024  

Grant amount: $861,000 

Equidad de Género: Ciudadanía, Trabajo y Familia A.C., with the support of the UN Trust Fund to End Violence against Women, implemented the three-year project “In community, we prevent and address sexual violence and child pregnancy in 12 municipalities of Mexico” from 2021 to 2024, in the states of Puebla, Tlaxcala and Mexico City. The project’s main goal was to strengthen the environment for preventing, protecting and responding to sexual violence against girls and adolescents, as well as to prevent child and adolescent pregnancies resulting from violence.  

Activities focused on girls and adolescents aged 10 to 19, in and out of school, living in low- or middle-income areas, and at heightened risk of sexual violence and child pregnancy due to the COVID-19 quarantines. It also targeted parents and guardians, public officials, schoolteachers, community leaders, and adolescent boys aged 15 to 19. Specifically, the project aimed to ensure that:  

• girls and adolescents reflect on gender stereotypes and norms related to love and their bodies, to develop their capacity to prevent violence;  
• adolescent boys become aware of gender-based violence and sexual and reproductive rights, and critically examine masculinity and patriarchal attitudes, in order to prevent sexual violence; and 
• institutions and public officials prevent and respond to sexual violence in accordance with domestic laws and policies. 

The final evaluation found that the project exceeded its outreach goals, that school-based interventions were particularly effective, and that the institutionalization of good practices and strong community engagement may help sustain the progress made. 

Key findings:  

• The project reached 32,916 girls and adolescents, including 3,587 Indigenous participants and 5,516 survivors of violence, surpassing the target by 42%, and participants retained knowledge on sexual violence, associated risks, the need to seek help, and available reporting mechanisms.  
• Participants shared the knowledge gained with classmates, but limited resources prevented the project from reaching all interested girls and adolescents. 
• Schoolteachers and authorities played a vital role in identifying alleged or potential survivors of sexual violence and creating synergy with parents to prevent or report such violence.  

“These projects — and we ourselves in the classroom — do motivate girls to not get stuck or drop out, but to continue on to secondary school after finishing primary, and not to become pregnant at an early age.” - Primary school teacher, San Pedro Cholula (translated from Spanish)