Research

Project

YouthPower – Making Cents International Evidence and Evaluation

Start Dates: 2015
PI(s): Richard F. Catalano
Funding: USAID

Project Description

Making Cents International was selected by USAID to be a prime contractor for the five-year Youth Power: Evidence and Evaluation IDIQ, which has an overall ceiling of $72 million. This initiative, jointly funded by USAID’s Bureau for Global Health (GH) and U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief; Bureau for Economic Growth, Education, and Environment (E3); and Bureau for Democracy, Conflict, and Humanitarian Assistance (DCHA), will provide USAID with expert research and evaluation of youth programming and will facilitate technical leadership and dissemination of knowledge in the field of positive youth development (PYD).

The Social Development Research Group is part of an impressive team of partners that include the International Center for Research on Women, Development & Training Services, Results for Development Institute, Khulisa Management Services, Royal Children’s Hospital Academic Centre at the University of Melbourne, Child Protection in Crisis Network at Columbia University, Young Americas Business Trust, and the India-based YP Foundation.

Making Cents was also selected to implement Task Order 1 under the YouthPower: Evidence and Evaluation IDIQ, with a ceiling of $21.7 million. The work under this Task Order will help USAID to transform its youth in development investments from single-sector, problem-focused responses towards cross-sectoral PYD investments that help countries support youth in reaching their full potential. To achieve this goal, the Making Cents team will implement the following activities:

  • Develop a user-friendly and sustainable YouthPower website that uses the latest technology to enhance sharing and dissemination of knowledge and lessons learned about PYD and serves as the Learning Hub for cross-sectoral youth development
  • Develop an inclusive, audience-specific, and demand-driven cross-sectoral Youth Learning Network and communities of practice that will improve knowledge, skills, practices, and partnerships around international cross-sectoral PYD
  • Design an indicator reporting system that will bridge gaps across sectors, establish common measures, promote learning, and contribute to a comprehensive PYD framework
  • Produce the definitive global meta-review of PYD literature that expands upon the existing evidence base
  • Provide evidence and evaluation support to USAID Missions and operating units, as needed, through evaluation and research technical assistance