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BRIEF April 17, 2018

Development Marketplace 2018: Nepal

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The winning Development Marketplace 2018 proposal from Equal Access International aims to minimize the gap in evidence on the diffusion of gender norms in low-income settings in Nepal.

Photo © Nirmal Rijal/Equal Access International


Equal Access International | Diffusion of Gender Norms Change at the Community Level


Project Summary:

In response to the well-recognized burden of intimate partner violence (IPV), there has been a growth in funding for primary prevention, emphasizing on norms change as an approach to widespread and sustained prevention. Norms and diffusion theorists believe only a small group of "trendsetters" may be needed to reject a standing norm and to effect change. But research into how norms change, particularly diffusion from a group to a community, is limited and best practices are nonexistent.

This project, spearheaded by Equal Access and Emory University, seeks to minimize the gap in evidence on the diffusion of gender norms in low-income settings, with the end goals of preventing violence against women (VAW) more broadly. In this light, the project investigates the diffusion effects of an existing norms-change intervention by identifying the characteristics which support the diffusion through mixed-methods analysis of existing data spanning over 24 months, and maps the longitudinal diffusion of ideas, attitudes, and practices within a community through participatory research and GPS documentation of support for violence-free households.


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Development Marketplace 2018: Tackling a Global Pandemic


Project Team:

Dr. Nirmal Prasad Rijal, Equal Access International’s Regional Representative for Asia, has expertise in media and communications for social change with more than 17 years of experience in the field of international development. Dr. Rijal has extensive experience implementing projects that utilize communications media and community outreach in areas of gender and inclusions, governance and civic participation, nutrition, health, and education.  Dr. Rijal holds a Ph.D. in Communication Studies from RMIT University in Australia, and a master’s degree in Public Administration, and has supported and led work in Nepal, Myanmar, India, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Cambodia, Laos and Pakistan, both in-country, and remotely.