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Incubator for girl-led solutions in ASRHR
- Mercy
- Kenya
- February 1, 2026
Situation
Across many communities, adolescent girls and young women experience low decision-making power regarding their reproductive health. Unequal power dynamics—at household, community and policy levels—mean that programmes intended to support them are often designed without their voices, resulting in limited ownership, limited relevance and limited impact.
Assignment
The challenge was to design programmes with girls leading the process, ensuring they sit in the driver’s seat of decisions that affect their reproductive health and broader wellbeing. The goal: shift power back to girls, strengthen their agency and embed youth leadership in programme design.
Approach
Through the Billion Girls Collab fellowship, a full Human-Centered Design process was implemented in partnership with community-based organizations. Adolescents took on the role of primary thought partners—conducting design research, participating in design sprints, generating ideas and refining concepts. Their lived experiences, motivations and insights shaped every stage of the design process.
Result
Three concepts were co-created with adolescents and the IDEO design team. These were later adopted and implemented by community-based organizations. The solutions addressed critical gaps in ASRHR information, menstrual hygiene management, economic empowerment and digital inclusion—strengthening girls’ agency while ensuring the interventions reflected their real needs and priorities.