title: An assessment of the Francois-Xavier Bagnoud poverty alleviation program in Rwanda and Uganda.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  We evaluate the three-year community-based FXBVillage poverty-alleviation model, which provides extremely poor families with sustained social support and graduated material support for education, healthcare, housing, nutrition, and income-generation.
  
  
  METHODS
  We combine a pre/post analysis of participant households in Rwanda (n = 912) and Uganda (n = 628) with construction and assessment of a combined multivariable household wealth index comparing FXBVillage data with national Demographic Health Surveys.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Many FXBVillage households shifted to higher household wealth quintiles. This shift was particularly strong in Rwanda. Increases among relevant household characteristics included (in Rwanda/Uganda): ≥3 meals/day (5-88%)/(44-86%), school attendance 5-17 years (79-97%)/(64-89%), adequate school supplies (7-97%)/(4-71%), and communal financial support if needed (27-98%)/(29-87%). Universal bednet ownership and water treatment was nearly attained; vaccine coverage was not, especially in Uganda.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The model likely supports poverty-alleviation among participants. The variability of improvements, across indicators and countries, highlights the need for better understanding of interactions within programs and between programs and implementation settings, as well as how these interactions matter to poverty-reduction strategies.
authors: Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19146, USA. mharhay@upenn.edu.|University of Pennsylvania, 708 Blockley Hall, 423 Guardian Drive, Philadelphia, PA, 19104-6021, USA. mharhay@upenn.edu.
authors: Michael O
authors: MO
authors: Harhay
authors: Department of Global Health and Social Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA.
authors: Mary C Smith
authors: MC
authors: Fawzi
authors: Franҫois-Xavier Bagnoud International, Geneva, Switzerland.
authors: Sacha
authors: S
authors: Jeanneret
authors: Franҫois-Xavier Bagnoud International, Geneva, Switzerland.
authors: Damascène
authors: D
authors: Ndayisaba
authors: Franҫois-Xavier Bagnoud International, Geneva, Switzerland.
authors: William
authors: W
authors: Kibaalya
authors: Department of the History of Science, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, 02138, USA.
authors: Emily A
authors: EA
authors: Harrison
authors: Department of Statistics, Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19146, USA.
authors: Dylan S
authors: DS
authors: Small
mesh_terms: D005378:Financial Support; D006801:Humans; D011203:Poverty / Q000517:prevention & control*; D015397:Program Evaluation; D012432:Rwanda; D012944:Social Support; D014454:Uganda
keywords: Evaluation; Graduation program; Poverty reduction; Rwanda; Uganda; Ultra-poor