Rebecca G-K - University of Michigan Ross School of Business and Medical School
I am thrilled to be a WDI fellow this summer working with Plan International Brazil. Plan international is a global development organization with a focus on the health, safety, and education of children. The organization was founded in 1937 and is now active in 70 countries. Programs in Brazil began in 1997 and are headquartered in São Paulo, with program offices throughout northeast Brazil where poverty rates are highest. In the remote northern state of Maranhão, the average per capita monthly income is $157, less than half of Brazil’s national average.
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| Local street market in São Paulo |
In recent years, Plan Brazil has shifted its program focus to gender equality; the current programs are designed to reduce gender-based violence, promote reproductive health and healthy relationships, and advance female leadership and representation in Brazilian society and politics. Child marriage is a particular problem in Brazil. Brazil ranks 4th in the world for absolute number of married or cohabiting girls under age 15. Brazil ranks 4th in the world for absolute number of women who gave birth by age 18, following India, Bangladesh and Nigeria. A recent study by Plan and Promundo found that the high rate of child marriage in Northeast Brazil is closely associated with unplanned adolescent pregnancy, interpersonal violence, limited economic opportunities for girls, and social beliefs about gender. Plan notes that its work is especially crucial in a climate of reduced federal support for reducing gender-based violence; the funds for tackling violence and promoting women’s equality were reduced by 74% in this year’s federal budget.
Plan Brazil implements numerous interventions with young boys and girls. One of their flagship programs is a female football league, in which girls learn to challenge gender stereotypes and occupy social spaces traditionally dominated by boys. Other programs train adolescents to teach their peers about reproductive health, teach young children how to protect themselves against child abuse, and enroll young women in an extracurricular Leadership School with modules on human rights and political participation. To learn more, check out this video.
My project this summer is focused on performance measurement. Before arriving in Brazil, I spent one week at the WDI office preparing and learning a ton about social impact measurement from the brilliant Performance Measurement Initiative team. I’ll be working with the Plan team to analyze their current monitoring and evaluation practices and launch a new methodology in order to capture the social impact that Plan’s work aims to achieve. I’ll also be collaborating with the finance team on a cost analysis project.
Flag on a car's side-mirror: World Cup spirit is everywhere!
Outside of work-related news, this week Brazil played its third match in the World Cup. The streets are all decorated for the world cup with brazilian flag banners and street art. The entire country pauses business to watch the matches! The Plan office did not even open until after the 9:00am game today so that everyone could watch. It was a tense game, with Brazil tied against Costa Rica 0:0 up through the last few minutes of the game. Then Brazil scored 2 goals for a victory! The streets erupted with firecrackers and vuvuzela horns. You can root along for Brazil next Wednesday as they play their next game!
