As we celebrate the International Day of the Girl, we showcase the contributions of the girl champions in promoting education and gender equality among girls in local communities. This remarkable day celebrated on 11th October amplifies the importance of addressing the challenges girls face in achieving their right to quality education, health services and safety. Under this year’s theme ‘Girls’ vision for the future’, we present the efforts of girl champions making stride in education for young girls in local communities in Uganda.
During her service in Jjalamba village Mpigi District, girl champion Salume could not imagine the difference she was about to make in the education of the young girls in St. Agatha Nursery and Primary School. In her words she says..
“I stumbled upon the Primary Five class. What struck me was the noticeable gender disparity – only 8 girls out of 25 pupils. Furthermore, absenteeism was rampant. Curious, I engaged the girls in a conversation to understand the reason behind their irregular attendance. Initially, they hesitated, saying “nothing.” However, after some probing, they opened up. They stated that they had to stay home to care for their younger siblings while their mothers went to work. This greatly displeased me. When I engaged the school administration on what could be done to change this narrative, their unanimous response was “improve their reading and writing skills in English. Right away, I made a promise to become a support tutor in the English language.
Day by day, we made progress in our reading and writing exercises. These involved storytelling, comprehension and communication skills. We had creative art sessions where pupils especially girls got engaged in acting, singing and dance. Slowly but surely, the girls began to thrive. Their English skills in terms of written and oral expression improved significantly as evidenced through their classwork. They actively participated in inter-cultural activities, including sports, dancing, and other extracurricular events. Witnessing their transformation was incredibly rewarding. By addressing their specific needs and providing support, we helped bridge the gender gap. We fostered a more inclusive learning environment for the girl child. My key takeaway was empowering girls through education was vital.”
Similarly, girl champion Janerose supported teenage girls through sensitizing them on their sexual reproductive health and rights, prevention of early and unwanted pregnancies, self-awareness as well as confidence building.
Moreover, the girl-talk spaces that girl champion Sharon facilitated enabled girls to learn more about personal hygiene management, relationships and general life skills. This was in St James primary school located in Namatovu village where she served as a CorpsAfrica Volunteer. Sharon has gone ahead to create more girl-talk spaces in different schools where girls share their experiences while getting more information on different life issues and career guidance.
Furthermore, together with PeaceCorps Uganda, girl champion Angella participated in the GLOW camp. Girls had the opportunity to talk about and practice goal setting for the future, meditation and mindfulness, journaling, public speaking and exercise.
Similarly, at Bulere Primary School, girl champions Mary and Najiwa empowered girls through career guidance to achieve their dreams and goals. They also facilitated them through skills in making paper bags. They would sell the paper bags to get funds to meet some of their scholastic materials.
We see such beautiful stories of girl champions making strides in education to change the statistic of ‘almost one in four girls compared to boys are in any form of education, employment or training’. We recognize that meaningful participation of girls in education is essential to enhancing girls’ vision for the future. Every one of us gets to play! #ThisisCorpsAfrica #RaisingYoungLeaders.