Introducing the AGYW Research Initiatives Matrix: Strengthening HIV Prevention Programming for Adolescent Girls and Young Women (AGYW) in Africa

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Sycona is excited to announce the development and availability of the AGYW Research Initiatives Matrix, an interactive tool designed to harmonise the collaboration of AGYW research initiatives in the African region.

About the matrix:

The AGYW Research Initiatives Matrix is a centralised knowledge sharing platform for collecting and organising AGYW research initiatives undertaken by organisations such as Sycona (a collaboration between Genesis Analytics and the Population Council),the Global Fund Strategic Initiatives Component 1 (led by the University of Cape Town), and the Global Fund Strategic Initiatives Component 3 (led by UNICEF). These three organisations have been working to align their AGYW research in order to increase complementarity and reduce duplication efforts. We recognise several organisations are doing related research and we are keen to learn about other AGYW evidence reviews underway. This matrix serves as a crucial component of Sycona, which aims to synthesise, contextualise, and disseminate findings to promote AGYW HIV prevention programming and informed decision-making.

Key Features and Benefits:

1. Research Repository: The matrix serves as a comprehensive repository of selected AGYW research initiatives, providing a holistic view of ongoing efforts across the African region. It encompasses a wide range of topics related to AGYW prevention services, PrEP and other ARV-based interventions, male engagement and male sexual partners as well as M&E data frameworks, to name a few.
2. Data Management: Organisations will add and update relevant details about their research initiatives, including project scope, objectives, methodology, and expected dissemination outcomes. This information is reviewed and the matrix is then updated on a quarterly basis, ensuring that the tool remains up-to-date and useful to the broader research community.
3. Enhanced Collaboration: The matrix enables collaboration among organisations by housing research endeavors into one central location. This allows for collaborations, knowledge exchange, and ultimately synergistic efforts toward common objectives of more effective AGYW HIV prevention programming.
4. Stay Informed: Users can search for and access information about other organisations' research endeavors, raising awareness, fostering learning, and preventing duplication of efforts. End-user stakeholders are also kept up to date on the latest developments in AGYW research and can use existing knowledge to inform     their own initiatives and decision-making.

We invite all those involved in AGYW research initiatives and HIV prevention to actively engage with the matrix.

Access to the External Research Initiative Matrix here.

For enquiries or additional information of relevant research initiatives, please contact:

Sycona: Sarah Magni | sarahm@genesis-analytics.com

UCT: Pertina Nyamukondiwa | pertina.nyamukondiwa@acceleratehub.org

UNICEF: Ayisha Jessa | ajessa@unicef.org

Stay tuned for further updates to the External Research Initiative Matrix!