STORY

Author: Agency for All Project | Posted: Sep 2023

This month, the Agency for All Project Consortium received the 2022-2023 Marge Horn Award from the USAID Bureau for Global Health’s Office of Population and Reproductive Health’s Research, Technology and Utilization Division (RTU). This is an annual award honoring stand-out implementation science research, global innovators, and practitioners who advance the field of sexual and reproductive health.

Within its first year, our consortium started and completed eight research studies, and is building upon regional communities of practice to further prioritize local decision making. We collaborated across USAID Missions and other sectors of USAID to double the original allocation of funding for the project’s first year and to tackle studies on the intersection of agency and vaccine hesitancy, adolescent childbearing, reproductive coercion, gender norms, and more.

Because our work is centered on principles of inclusion and locally-led research, USAID awarded the full Agency for All Consortium of implementing partners this year.

“This kind of consortium is extremely unique,” said Julianne Weis, Senior Social Science Advisor and Agency for All Agreement Officer Representative. “During the [July 2023] Partners Meeting [in Nairobi, Kenya], we discussed the challenges of being responsive to USAID requests and also ensuring locally-led research, implementation, and engagement. The fact that you were able to achieve what you did, while pausing to deepen these partner relationships, is truly remarkable and quite unprecedented.”

To USAID and our consortium partners: thank you!

None of our progress this year would be possible without the hard work of our talented team, who share a dedication to advancing social and behavior change. 80+ people make up our dynamic Agency for All consortium, representing 13 different regional and global organizations: Center on Gender Equity and Health (GEH) at UCSD, Centre for Catalyzing Change, CORE Group, Equimundo, EVIHDAF, International Planned Parenthood Federation, Makerere University, Matchboxology, Sambodhi, Save the Children, Shujaaz, Inc., University of Witswatersand, Viamo

Agency for All was built upon lessons from the research of many USAID projects that came before it. We are deeply appreciative to Julianne Weis, Angela Brasington, Mihira Karra, ARIT ESSANG, MPH, Diana Santillan, Alexandria Mickler, MSPH, Laura Itzkowitz, Anita Dam, MSPH, Kristina Granger, MPH, and the rest of our USAID team, who continue to share insights, advocate for and represent our work, and actively prioritize local voices.

“This work is challenging, and each of our partners makes an incredible effort every day. Knowing that our efforts are appreciated is truly motivating,” reflected Project Director, Rebecka Lundgren. “I am honored to be working with this diverse group, humbled by this recognition, and grateful for insightful leadership of our colleagues at USAID.”

About the Award

The Marge Horn Award was established in honor of Dr. Marjorie Horn, who was Deputy Director of RTU before her passing in 2002. Well-known and well-loved, she was an implementation scientist and author who advanced the field of family planning and sexual and reproductive health research globally. 

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