Adapting Passerelles’ theory of change during COVID-19: Addressing public health needs and continuity of services in Senegal

• In Event: Adapting theories of change in the time of COVID

Proposal

The USAID Passerelles project in Senegal aims to work with stakeholders (government, communities, schools, and private sector) to provide access to relevant quality education to children and youth in a safe and supportive learning environment so that they can become better educated citizens who can meaningfully contribute to the development of the country. Initially, the Passerelles theory of change (TOC) was as follows:
• If girls, boys and marginalized and vulnerable children and youth have access to safe, supportive and responsive complementary education services or formal education services that are contextually appropriate and build on their academic and life skills; and
• If institutional and learning barriers are removed to enable marginalized and vulnerable children and youth to successfully transition to middle school; and
• If government, community, youth, parents and caregivers, religious leaders, schools and the private sector engage to enroll and support out-of-school children and youth in responsive education;
• THEN girls and boys aged 9-16 in the Casamance and Kedougou regions of Senegal will develop essential socio-emotional (SEL) life skills.

With the emergence of COVID-19, FHI 360 and its partners were required to adapt project activities to respond to communities’ needs. The project initiated efforts to support the Government of Senegal in preventing the spread of the virus through various communication approaches aimed at reinforcing the adoption of protective measures in communities targeted by the project. These communication approaches include:
- Mass communication targeting local radio in the target regions
- Local communication involving community members
- Digital communication through SMS messages and social networks

Project efforts were also geared toward ensuring continuity of inclusive education services. In preparation for schools reopening, the project adapted its SEL program to a distance training platform to provide both teachers and learners psychosocial support in the wake of the stressful experiences induced by COVID-19. In addition, classes reopening requires compliance with hygiene measures to ensure the safety and health of teachers and students. Hence, USAID Passerelles provided hand-washing kits to schools and non-formal centers supported by the project.
As a result of these modifications, the project developed additional monitoring and evaluation systems to measure COVID-19-related indicators. In particular, the project monitored the communication campaigns with teachers and youth. The hypothesis is that in spite of these modifications, the project will still be able to reach its overall objective of improving student socio-emotional life skills. Presenters will discuss what modifications the COVID-19 pandemic has brought to the theory of change of the project, adaptations made to project design in responses to these modifications, and the monitoring system put in place to measure these changes.

Author

• Yvonne Cao, FHI 360