Webinar Key takeaways: Review and assessment of technology-based interventions to address harmful practices

It is a report of a webinar on the review and assessment of technology-based interventions to address harmful practices, such as child marriage and female genital mutilation (FGM). The webinar was held on 18 May 2023 and was organized by UNICEF and UNFPA. The main points of the document are:

• Introduction: The document explains the background and objectives of the webinar, which was to share the findings of a landscape review and an in-depth assessment of some of the existing digital interventions to address child marriage and FGM, commissioned by the two global joint programmes on these issues.
• Overview of the technical landscape: The document presents some data and analysis on the access to electricity, internet and mobile phones, the government support for digital literacy, and the gender disparities in these indicators across Africa, Asia and the Middle East, where the interventions are focused.
• Landscape mapping of digital interventions: The document describes the methodology and results of the mapping of 50 digital interventions across 13 countries, using different technologies and targeting different outcomes. The document highlights the strengths and challenges of these interventions, as well as some recommendations for their design, implementation and sustainability.
• In-depth assessment of three digital interventions: The document provides a detailed evaluation of three selected interventions: Linha Fala Criança in Mozambique (a free telephone helpline), the Saleema Initiative in Sudan (a community-based mobilization campaign), and Love Matters in India (a website and resource hub). The document discusses the relevance, innovation, effectiveness, impact, sustainability and scalability of these interventions, as well as some lessons learned and best practices.
• Discussion/Q&A: The document summarizes the main questions and answers that emerged during the webinar, covering topics such as the selection criteria, the regions of focus, the impact measurement, the digital divide, the safety and ethics, and the monitoring and evaluation of the interventions.
• Additional resources: The document provides links to the full report of the review and assessment, as well as to other relevant guidance and documents on digital and remote approaches in eliminating harmful practices.