Topic: Livelihoods

Building Climate Resilience for Women in Extreme Poverty: Adaptations and Policy Recommendations from the Government of Tunisia’s Pilot Graduation Program

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Climate change, poverty, and gender are inextricably interconnected. As climate change worsens it compounds systemic inequalities and exacerbates poverty, food insecurity, and injustice, especially for women and girls. Governments must adopt an integrated approach to addressing the climate crisis, with an intentional focus on building resilience for women living in poverty. Climate change poses unprecedented … Continued

Tackling Extreme Poverty and Climate Change Together: Solutions from the Global South

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This event was organized by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and BRAC. The panel shared insights and experiences of different approaches including the Graduation approach, cash transfers and broader adaptive social protection systems, and takeaways on applying these approaches to poverty reduction and climate adaptation. Speakers shared concrete examples, practical insights, and evidence … Continued

Stories of Resilience and Innovation: Disability Inclusive Graduation (DIG) in Uganda

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In 2020 a Disability Inclusive Graduation program was launched in Northern Uganda, targeting 2,700 households living in extreme poverty. The DIG program provided training on enterprise management, life skills, financial literacy, and inclusion in Village Savings and Loans Association (VSLA) groups and Village Social Solidarity Committees. Among the participants were 554 persons living with disabilities … Continued

Adapting the Graduation Approach for Unique Contexts

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Enabling people to escape the poverty trap for the long-term requires adaptive approaches that are designed at the local level with their unique contexts in mind. Graduation is one such approach that goes far beyond simply building resilient livelihoods and works to address the multidimensional nature of extreme poverty that is often compounded by circumstances … Continued

Expanding Graduation to Reach More in Extreme Poverty

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Developed in the early 2000s, the Graduation approach was born out of learning from BRAC’s long period of program implementation that preceded it. BRAC has continuously evolved the Graduation approach since first starting the Ultra-Poor Graduation (UPG) program in Bangladesh in 2002, and it has now been adapted and expanded by BRAC and other organizations … Continued

How to Strengthen Social Protection Programs with the Graduation Approach

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Governments must strengthen their social protection systems to ensure those furthest behind are covered and that their long-term needs are met. Otherwise, the deepest forms of poverty will remain entrenched. Social protection programs help people who are marginalized and living in poverty meet their most basic needs. They enable people to cope with crises, find … Continued

Door of Hope (Bab Amal): Adapting the Graduation Approach in Upper Egypt

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In July 2018, the Bab Amal Graduation program was launched with the objective of reducing extreme poverty in Upper Egypt. Together with the Sawiris Foundation, J-PAL, the Egyptian Human Development Association (EHDA), and Giving Without Limits Association (GWLA), the pilot targets approximately 2,400 rural, extreme poor households in the Assiut and Sohag governorates. BRAC UPGI … Continued

Breaking the Poverty Trap with the Graduation Approach

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Learn how a proven solution to poverty eradication can help empower millions to lift themselves into sustainable livelihood. BRAC, the world’s largest NGO, wanted to help previously unreachable people in extreme poverty build sustainable livelihoods long-term. So, in 2002 we pioneered the Graduation approach – a holistic sequence of interventions that helps people escape the … Continued

Clearing Pathways to Prosperity With a Livelihood Building Program in Kenya – BOMA

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Michael Carter (University of California, Davis); Geyi Zheng (University of California, Davis; Nathan Jensen (International Livestock Research Institute), April 2022 Abstract: Livelihood-building programs combine training and assets for rural households with the least means to build a sustainable and independent income. Since 2018, we have been evaluating such a program in Samburu, Kenya among women … Continued

A Big Push for Entrepreneurship: Lessons from a Field Experiment – Cartier

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Cartier Women’s Initiative (2022)  Using a field experiment from BRAC as an entry point, Prof. Esther Duflo shows how one big boost to women living in extreme poverty can help their businesses take off, with long-lasting positive impact for them and the next generation. Prof. Duflo shares lessons learned from the program, with insights on … Continued