A systematic review of the evidence on peer education programmes for promoting the sexual and reproductive health of young people in India

A systematic review of 13 studies on peer education programmes in India finds mixed but promising evidence for their role in improving young people's sexual and reproductive health and gender-equitable attitudes.

This paper reviews evidence from 13 studies of peer education programmes for young people's sexual and reproductive health in India, published between 2000 and 2016. Peer education, where young people share health information with others their own age, is widely used because it is low-cost and can reach adolescents in settings adults often cannot.

Most programmes combined peer education with other activities, such as vocational training, sports coaching or community outreach, and covered topics like puberty, contraception and sexually transmitted infections. A smaller number also addressed gender norms, relationships and violence.

Results were mixed. Most programmes improved knowledge, but fewer changed attitudes or behaviour. Stand-alone peer education programmes tended to show stronger results than multi-component ones, and some led to more gender-equitable attitudes among adolescent boys. The authors call for better research on what makes peer education work.

This resource is from the Centre for Catalyzing Change (C3), an organization working to equip, mobilise and empower girls and women in India to achieve gender equality.

Key messages

• Peer education is a common but not standardised approach to improving young people's sexual and reproductive health in India, usually combined with other interventions rather than used alone.
• Of the 13 initiatives reviewed, most improved knowledge of sexual and reproductive health, but fewer changed attitudes or behaviour.
• Programmes using peer education as a stand-alone intervention showed more consistent, statistically significant improvements in attitudes and behaviour than multi-component programmes.
• Some programmes led to more gender-equitable attitudes among adolescent boys, including reduced support for controlling or violent behaviour towards women and girls.
• The evidence base on peer education in India remains limited in both quantity and quality, and further research is needed on what conditions make it effective.