Indlela is the first-of-its-kind unit focused on building capacity to design and test nudges and other behavioral solutions to improve the effectiveness of health services and achieve better health outcomes in South Africa. Indlela, which means “the way” or “the path” in Zulu, is funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for Health Incentives and Behavioral Economics (CHIBE), and is based at the University of Witwatersrand’s Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office (HE2RO). Launched in January 2020, the focus of Indlela is to expand the use of behavioral economics within HIV prevention and treatment programs in South Africa. Specifically, Indlela seeks to strengthen the ability of health service delivery providers and key research institutions to develop and test contextually appropriate interventions that are informed by behavioral science principles. In future years, the unit’s scope will expand beyond HIV to include other pressing public health issues in South Africa.
Updated November 2020