Systematic review summaries

These plain-language summaries are tailored to users interested in the findings and implications for policy, programming, practice or further research.

Latest systematic review summary reports

Systematic review summary reports

Economic self-help group programmes for improving women’s empowerment

Systematic review summary 3ie PDF icon 2019  
This report summarises a systematic review by Brody and colleagues on the impacts of women’s economic self-help groups on their political, economic, social and psychological empowerment.

Promoting handwashing and sanitation behaviour change in low-and middle-income countries

Systematic review summary 3ie PDF icon 2017  
This report summarises a systematic review that examines which promotional approaches are effective in changing handwashing and sanitation behaviour and which implementation factors affect the success or failure of such interventions.

Effectiveness of agricultural certification schemes for improving socio-economic outcomes in low- and middle-income countries

Systematic review summary 3ie PDF icon 2017  
This report summarises a systematic review by Oya and colleagues that assesses the impact of agriculture certification schemes on improving socio-economic conditions for workers and farmers in low- and middle-income countries.

Short-term WASH interventions in emergency responses in low- and middle-income countries

Systematic review summary 3ie PDF icon 2017  

This is a summary report of a full systematic review that synthesised evidence on water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) interventions implemented in the first 12 months of an emergency response.

The impact of education programmes on learning and school participation in low- and middle-income countries

Systematic review summary 3ie PDF icon 2016  
This report is based on a 3ie systematic review to understand the effectiveness of different education interventions that have been implemented to resolve what is being seen as a learning crisis.

Effects of training, innovation and new technology on African smallholder farmers’ economic outcomes and food security

Systematic review summary 3ie PDF icon 2016  
This report is based on a systematic review by Stewart and colleagues that synthesises evidence on the effects of training, innovations and new technology on African smallholder farmers’ income, assets and food security.

Supplementary feeding for improving the health of disadvantaged infants and children: what works and why?

Systematic review summary 3ie PDF icon 2016  
This report – a summary of a systematic review and a realist review – by Kristjansson et al. examines the evidence on whether supplementary feeding can improve the health of infants and children between three months and five years of age.

Community-based rehabilitation for people with disabilities

Systematic review summary 3ie PDF icon 2016  
This report by Lemmi and colleagues is based on a systematic review that looked at the impact of community-based rehabilitation (CBR) on health, education, livelihoods, social inclusion and empowerment.

Identification and measurement of health-related spillovers in impact evaluations

Systematic review summary 3ie PDF icon 2016  
This systematic review summary by Benjamin-Chung and colleagues tries to identify mechanisms that trigger spillover through geographic or social proximity, learning or imitation, norm-shaping, income and substitute effects, general equilibrium effects and relative deprivation.

What factors affect sustained adoption of safe water, hygiene and sanitation technologies?

Systematic review summary 3ie PDF icon 2015  
Safe water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) behaviours, such as treating drinking water, washing hands at key times or using a latrine rather than defecating in open spaces, are cornerstones of building strong, healthy communities and reducing mortality due to diarrhoea and other preventable diseases. Many studies have shown the health benefits of WASH, and factors that affect initial adoption of short-term WASH use. Few have assessed the determinants of long-term, sustained WASH practice.