Table 4. Framework overview of main factors affecting program benefit per method and participant group.

Methods & participants	Program factors	Program officer factors	Young women factors	Social factors	Structural factors
Interviews Young women	• Application process is easy • Decisions take too long • Rural areas require more attention • Need for better outreach	• Half of YW found POs helpful • A third found POs unhelpful • Frustration with the process transformed into anger with POs	• Despair in YW expressed as resentment and hopelessness • Patience and determination • Few YW with positive feelings (happiness, pride, satisfaction)	• Most YW knew someone assisted by the program • Group solidarity; learning from peers • Mobilization of YW • Competing childcare responsibilities	• (Extreme) poverty • Need to support family (bread winners) • Community-level challenges
Interviews Program officers	• Easy application process (most programs) • Some programs are not accessible for YW • Most programs are not sustainable	• Effort to support YW • Feelings of demotivation • Upstream barriers	• YW lack technical and social skills • Negative attitudes among YW • YW’s preferences and expectations do not match programs on offer • Few YW in programs	• YW lack a supportive social environment	• YW lack access to land and water • Lack of coordination between programs or with land/water boards • Generalized poverty prevents program success
FCM YW	• Poor outreach • Process is complicated/too long (some programs) • Difficulty of (physical) access in remote areas: lack of transport* and POs not visiting remote areas*	• Bad/improper PO behavior • POs unhelpful/unfriendly • POs are unfair*	• YW lack knowledge/skills • YW lack self-confidence • Unhelpful attitudes and behaviors among YW • YW hold negative views of programs	• Competing household and childcare responsibilities • Unsupportive partners • Jealousy and competition between YW* • Stigma associated with poverty programs*	• Poverty • Institutional barriers (lack of access to land and water)
FCM Officers	• Poor outreach • Process is complicated/too long (some programs) Programs are unsuitable, including Ipelegeng**		• YW lack knowledge/skills • YW lack self-confidence • Unhelpful attitudes and behavior among YW • YW hold negative views of programs	• Competing household and childcare responsibilities	• Poverty • Social norms • Institutional barriers (lack of access to land/water; lack of coordination**; policies** and legislation**)
DD improvement recommen-dations	• Diversify venues for outreach: clinics, churches, school kids passing on message to YW, social media, market days • Involve YW in outreach	• POs help fill out forms • POs improve efficiency, client friendliness • Performance indicators for POs to bring YW onto programs	• Advertise options for free return to secondary education • Train YW to train peers to fill out complicated applications • YW could form groups to approach POs for vocational training	• Involve community and boyfriends in outreach • Leverage role models for YW • Form YW support groups	• Improve coordination between programs and with land/water boards • Involve national levels for support

Main themes reported per data source (horizontal) or by factor (vertical). FCM themes in the table were reported by at least 50% of stakeholder groups.

*FCM concepts only mentioned by young women

**only mentioned by officers. Abbreviations: YW: unemployed and out-of-school young women; PO: Program officers; FCM: Fuzzy cognitive maps; DD: Deliberative dialogue.