Give Girls A Voice

 Our Give Girls A Voice Program

Village residents face many barriers to becoming self-sustaining including high rates of school absence and dropouts, and teen pregnancy.

Through conversations with the community we found that while youth receive education in school about traditional subjects, there are no classes that address health and reproduction.

In conjunction with this information our research reflected that girls are overwhelmingly at higher risk to miss or drop out of school because they do not have access to sanitary products or are expected to stay home to parent their child. Therefore, we started a program to provide girls with information about their bodies and menstrual cycles, and just as importantly to work with them on communication, self-esteem and how to visualize a life of purpose for themselves. This endeavor is further supported by another program we created that provides reusable menstrual pads to girls.

Give Girls a Voice works with a volunteer staff in several schools with girls from 10-16 years of age. Our volunteers are professional women from nearby communities who spend time pouring into the girls in the 8 schools we work in, teaching them important health and life skills, and helping them understand their value and potential.

So far this program has touched the lives of over 1,000 girls!  As we fine-tune this program we will begin to develop a similar curriculum for the village boys as well.