A land formalisation programme in Benin significantly increased the likelihood that widows – especially those without a son – remained in their villages, offering formal institutional protection where customary norms left women most vulnerable.

In Nigeria, cash transfers to women increase their desire for agency but only when husbands can't see it – revealing the complex interplay between economic empowerment and social norms.

An empowerment programme in Sierra Leone that supported girls through a simple life skills and livelihood training buffered adolescent girls from the adverse effects of the Ebola crisis.

Sierra Leone's civil war not only left a legacy of lost lives and damaged infrastructure, but changed the way trust is formed, showing how early-life trauma can shape long-term economic decision making.

In the midst of the Ebola crisis an empowerment programme acts as a shield for adolescent girls

A cheap intervention increased firm registration but failed to impact tax registration, negating potential tax revenue

Gender-sensitive youth employment programmes combining income generation and life skills training can be effective in helping adolescent girls succeed

A new personal initiative training programme outperformed traditional business training in increasing profits for informal firms in Togo