Analyze, Adapt, Scale: Evidence Based Decision Making to Promote Resilience
This event is part of Agency Learning and Evidence Month from May 2–30, USAID’s flagship celebration of research, evaluation, and learning.
The USAID/Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance funded Graduating to Resilience Activity in Uganda implemented by AVSI Foundation, in partnership with Trickle Up and American Institutes for Research (AIR), aims to graduate 13,200 extremely poor refugee and Ugandan households in Kamwenge from conditions of food insecurity and fragile livelihoods to self-reliance and resilience. The Activity design is based on the graduation approach, an integrated set of multi-sectoral interventions that builds on each other to help households address the root causes of poverty. Implemented in over 44 countries, the graduation approach is meant to be designed and adapted to the local context, addressing the specific challenges and opportunities facing communities. Through a randomized control trial, conducted by Innovations for Poverty Action, the Activity seeks to identify the most cost-effective graduation approach to meet food security and nutrition challenges and promote household level resilience to shocks and stressors (USAID Agency Learning Priority 2 – Resilience to Shocks). To test different approaches, the seven-year implementation period was divided into two cohorts (2018-2021, 2022-2023) each consisting of 6,600 households. The Activity utilized a suite of adaptive management approaches including theory of change reviews, assessments and special studies, participant feedback through Standing Committees, performance and context monitoring, and scenario planning to ensure that the Activity was adaptive and responsive to the needs of local stakeholders. Based on this evidence, the Activity adjusted the design and implementation approach both at the start of the activity and between the two cohorts. The Activity will use the evidence and data from these adaptations to inform future USAID resilience programs in Uganda and globally and contribute to the evidence base on scaling effective development approaches.
This event is part of Agency Learning and Evidence Month from May 2–30, USAID’s flagship celebration of research, evaluation, and learning. See the 2024 Event Program for more information.