A former participant in a USAID-funded reproductive health program said she believed if a now terminated program were still running, she would be able to influence her family's decision regarding early marriage. She said of the program and its termination: “I managed to change our behavior about periods, but not about marriage. [...] Now, no one at home listens to us.”

Date: 3/26

Region: South Asia

Country: Nepal

Topic: Gender Equality & Inclusion, Health

Policy Lens: Moral Leadership

Entry Type: Field Observation

Additional Context: This quote was collected as part of The Aid Report's original reporting, "In Nepal, US ends effort to help women make life-or-death choices." The reporter looked into the impacts of aid cuts on a nationwide program designed to "break gender norms that undervalued women's lives." The Adolescent Reproductive Health, or ARH, program worked across homes, schools, and villages to shift behaviors around pregnancy, childbirth, and adolescent health.

The quote is attributed to Sunita Yadav who is a 16-year-old student and member of an adolescent girls’ group that was funded by ARH.

Source: Devex