Advancing Education and Health via Human Capital Interventions in West Africa

A comprehensive guidance note produced by the World Bank under the Sahel Adaptive Social Protection Program (SASPP), in collaboration with UNICEF and the University of Oxford’s Poverty and Human Development Initiative, lays out a comprehensive framework for boosting the effectiveness of social protection programs by integrating behavioral and educational interventions. The report responds to an alarming projection: children in West Africa are expected to reach only 30 to 40 percent of their future productivity potential, due to chronic deficits in health, education, and nutrition. These limitations are intensified by widespread multidimensional poverty, where low literacy rates, poor school attendance, and high stunting levels are pervasive. Traditional social protection programs, often built around cash transfers, are not enough. The guidance note argues that sustainable transformation depends on embedding Human Capital Accompanying Measures (HCAMs) into these programs to address behavioral drivers that influence individual and community decisions.

From Awareness to Action: A Behavior-Focused Blueprint

At the core of the guidance is the UNICEF Behavioural Drivers Model, which illustrates how behavior is influenced by psychological, social, and environmental factors. The model is used to design HCAMs that not only provide information but also reshape attitudes and norms, particularly in domains like child feeding, hygiene, school attendance, and maternal care. While many countries in the Sahel have implemented HCAMs in some form, their effectiveness has varied widely due to a lack of consistency, poor localization, and insufficient involvement of local stakeholders. This document provides a solution: a well-sequenced, participatory approach that begins with identifying key human capital themes and extends to implementing tailored messages using the most effective tools and community actors. Each step, from identifying the recipient population to delivering activities and evaluating results, is grounded in evidence and designed for scalability.

Local Voices, Local Solutions

A key strength of the guidance is its emphasis on local context and participatory development. Country experiences from Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, and Senegal illustrate how HCAMs can be adapted to address specific challenges. In Chad, for instance, the curriculum includes themes like WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene), child nutrition, reproductive health, and the causes of girls’ school dropout. Guinea’s pilot study highlighted the value of engaging local leaders, beneficiaries, and service providers early in the design process to identify communication barriers and cultural sensitivities. Emerging themes such as climate change awareness, productive inclusion, and gender equality are also making their way into HCAM frameworks. These topics, though once considered peripheral, are now being recognized as critical to long-term resilience and development.

The process of designing HCAMs includes identifying community influencers, such as religious leaders, teachers, and elders, who can act as change agents. Their endorsement of new behaviors makes it more likely that messages will be accepted and internalized. Table 2 in the document compares delivery models, from government-led systems to hybrid approaches involving NGOs and private actors. The choice of model depends on factors like service provider availability, training capacity, and population reach. In more remote areas, where access is limited, the guidance suggests using alternative channels such as community radio, mobile outreach, and local theatre.

Innovative Engagements That Drive Change

The guidance emphasizes the importance of delivering HCAMs through engaging, community-appropriate formats. Activities are categorized into five main types: mass sensitization campaigns, community forums, group discussions, home visits, and interactive demonstrations. For example, Box 6 describes how Burkina Faso implemented behavior change through WhatsApp messages, radio dramas, and live events, allowing greater flexibility in reaching households with different literacy levels and schedules. The document recommends a minimum duration of 45 minutes per session to maximize engagement and knowledge retention. Tools like flip charts, video materials, and props are rated based on their ability to encourage interaction, reach broad audiences, and minimize reliance on highly skilled facilitators.

The frequency of activities varies by country, with Senegal hosting up to 20 sessions annually compared to only four in Mauritania. These differences underscore the need for tailored planning and adequate budgeting. Table 4 evaluates the pros and cons of various communication tools, from high-engagement demonstrations to low-cost audio recordings. The right mix depends on the community context and the available resources.

From Planning to Proof: Evaluating What Works

Monitoring and evaluation are integrated into the HCAM implementation cycle through a structured timeline that includes baseline, midline, and endline assessments over an 18-month period. These assessments combine quantitative surveys, which track knowledge gains and behavior changes, with qualitative methods that capture deeper insights into user experiences, delivery challenges, and community dynamics. This evidence-based feedback loop is essential for refining interventions and ensuring they remain responsive to evolving needs.

Two standout case studies, Mauritania’s Tekavoul and The Gambia’s Nafa program, offer practical illustrations of these principles in action. Mauritania uses a government-led approach, delivering HCAMs every three months across six themes ranging from hygiene to economic inclusion. In contrast, The Gambia operates a hybrid model through Village Development Committees and NGOs, delivering monthly sessions using radio shows, flip charts, and peer education. Both programs reflect a commitment to participatory design, evidence-based content, and long-term capacity building.

The guidance note calls on governments, development partners, and social protection practitioners to elevate HCAMs from a supporting role to a central pillar of social policy. These measures, when thoughtfully designed and locally owned, can unlock transformative gains in health, education, and economic opportunity across West Africa. By embedding behavioral change into the heart of program design, countries can build more resilient communities and ensure that social protection delivers not just income security, but a pathway to sustainable human development.