World Vision

Can a light-touch graduation model enhance livelihood outcomes? Evidence from Ethiopia

The effect of teacher training and community literacy programming on teacher and student outcomes

Motivated by extremely low levels of basic reading skills in sub-Saharan Africa, we experimentally evaluate two interventions designed to enhance students’ early-grade literacy performance in rural Mozambique: a relatively light-touch, scalable teacher training in early-grade literacy including the provision of pedagogical materials, and teacher training and materials in conjunction with community-level reading camps. Using data from 1,596 third graders in 160 rural public primary schools, we find no evidence that either intervention improved teachers’ pedagogical knowledge or practices or student or teacher attendance following two years of implementation. There are some weak positive effects on student reading as measured by a literacy assessment, primarily observed in a shift away from scores of zero, and these effects are consistent across arms. Our findings are aligned with the growing consensus that more intensive school- and/or community-based interventions are required to meaningfully improve learning.

Waste to animal feed

Currently, Food Waste (FW) is a pressing global issue with significant environmental, social, and economic implications. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), approximately one-third of all food produced for human consumption ― almost 1.3 billion tons globally ― is lost or wasted each year . This wastage occurs throughout the food system, from farm to fork. However, FW in high-income countries mainly originates from food consumption whereas in low-income countries it comes from food production and food processing [1]. This reflects differences in consumers’ habits and behavior and in the technological underpinnings of local food systems. Regardless of which part of the food system FW originates from, it has serious consequences for food security [2], resource conservation [3], and climate change [4]. FW contributes to greenhouse gas emissions through various processes. Greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide and methane, are emitted when FW is landfilled [5]. The total global amount of FW generates 3.3 billion tons of carbon dioxide emission annually [6]. Landfilling also contributes to the formation of leachate, a toxic liquid that can contaminate groundwater and surface water.