Gender-Environment and Development Action: Statement on the 16 days of activism

The 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence is an international campaign to challenge violence against women and girls. The campaign runs every year from 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, to 10 December. This day was initiated in 1991 by the first Women’s Global Leadership Institute, held by the Center for Women’s Global Leadership (CWGL) at Rutgers University.

There has been a lot of violence against women and girls (VAWG) in the whole world and there has been lots of statistics about this and so the 16 days of activism were adopted to create awareness about these challenges of VAWG, engage leaders and different stakeholders in the fight against VAWG among others.

According to the latest estimates, nearly 1 in 3 women aged 15 years and older, around the world have been subjected to physical or sexual violence by an intimate partner, non-partner or both, at least once in their lifetime, indicating that levels of VAWG have remained largely unchanged over the last decade (UN Women). These numbers do not reflect the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and would be even higher if they included the full continuum of violence that affect women and girls including sexual harassment, violence in digital contexts, harmful practices and sexual exploitation. COVID-19 has exacerbated all the risk factors for VAWG, including unemployment and poverty, and reinforced many of the root causes such as gender stereotypes and harmful social norms. It has been estimated that 11 million girls may not return to school because of COVID-19, thereby increasing their risk of child marriage.

According to a survey by UBOS and UN Women (2020) in Uganda https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/uganda_rga_full_report.pdf , it found out that gender-based violence victims are largely being violated by people they live with/other household members, This includes spouses (33%), father (9%), mother (4%), other relatives (4%), sibling (2%), and daughter/son (1%). Therefore, awareness about the law, guidance and engagement with different actors is very key especially during these 16 days of Activism.

Gender-Environment and Development Action Uganda stands with the rest of the Partners, CSOs to commemorate and participate in making awareness through media about VAWG. GEDA Uganda currently works with teenage mothers in Kasese District to skill them in Knitting, tailoring and craft shoe making as a way of giving them hope.

Teenage mothers practical training session in craft shoe making

GEDA Uganda envisions “A world where gender equity and environmental sustainability prevail, in which women and girls have the power to harness their full potential”. We are committed to contributing towards SDG 5 and we would like to encourage each and every one to do their role to end Violence against Women and girls. Together we can orange the world and end VAWG.

Teenage mothers tailoring classes

SUCCESS STORY: MITSE NIGHT

By Bonita Masika-GEDA Uganda.

Mitse Night is among the teenage mothers that underwent the crotchet shoe making training exercise that was implemented by GEDA Uganda under its skilling project. Before she underwent this training, she had neither acquired any skill nor had any job or source of income. When GEDA Uganda intervened by extending the Crochet shoe making training to the teenage mothers under the MSF program, Mitse Night had the opportunity to take up this training. When she was still a trainee, she showed a lot of interest and took her training seriously.

Mitse Night (3rd right, wrapped with stripped cloth) receiving her start up kit.

After the training was completed and even before being given the startup kit package, Night took the initiative of utilizing the skill and the small resources she had acquired during the training to make close to two pairs of shoes which she was able to sell at 10,000 Uganda shillings (About $3) each thus being able to make a profit of 20,000 since the training materials had been offered by GEDA Uganda at no cost. “I was lucky for having been part of this training and am grateful that i already made some money however little it is. Am very hopeful that this is going to change my life, thanks very much to GEDA Uganda” With these humble savings and the additional startup kit that was provided to her, Mitse believes that she will be able to meet the basic needs for herself and her family and also boost her small shoe making start up business.

Night has a number of challenges but they don’t keep her from moving forward. Her main challenge is lack of enough capital to rent a room and also buy more materials, she has also faced a challenge of low customer turn up and low unfavorable prices from the customers. But all the same she still believes there is light at the end of the tunnel.

Mitse Night appreciating GEDA team.

Teenage mothers receive their start up kits.

Teen mothers pose for a photo after receiving their kits.

After their skilling program, teenage mothers have finally received their start up kits to start on a new life with the skills attained. Gender-Environment and Development Action has been equipping these teenage mothers with different skills.

The first batch of teenage mothers that were trained in crotchet shoe making received their kits at their different training stations. The MSF group received their kits at the MSF training center while Nyamwamba Division teenage mothers received their kits at the Division Headquarters.

Teenage mother receiving her kit from GEDA Uganda Officer

Speaking at the function the Division Community Development Officer appreciated the efforts of Gender-Environment and Development Action in equipping the teenage mothers and giving them hope. He promised maximum support to the teenage mothers and GEDA Uganda for the services they are rendering. The MSF representative encouraged the teenage mothers to use the start up kits well and continue behaving well not to have a repeat of what has already happened to them but think of their future to be a bright one. He thanked GEDA Uganda for the partnership in skilling this team they have been offering reproductive health services. He said this was good combination of services to the teenage mothers.

Display of some kits

Speaking at the same function the GEDA Uganda representative Baluku Omar also advised the teenage mothers to use the start up kits to enrich the standard of living and promised continued follow ups and mentorships. He said the start up kits may not be enough but worth starting a new life.

Meanwhile the tailoring group of teenage mothers is still going on with their training that lasts utmost 3 months, they will also be awarded start up kits as and when they complete their training and so it is to the knitting group.

First batch of teenage mothers complete skilling

In Uganda like elsewhere around the world, Covid-19 has led to an increase in teenage pregnancy. In order to gain basic necessities like sanitary towels, girls have engaged in negative coping mechanisms like transactional sex with men who took advantage of their need for money. Teenage pregnancies, among other factors is increasing the number of girls not in school.

GEDA Uganda mid this year embarked on finding and profiling teenage mothers in Kasese District. Like else where in the country, Kasese is one of the Districts with high teenage pregnancies hence teenage mothers that have thereafter been abandoned by the fathers to their children.

Asked what they would do to bring back hope, the teenage mothers GEDA Uganda had access to asked for skilling that would be a one off skill for them to earn a living. Tailoring, knitting and craft shoe making were identified as skills to be given to the teenage mothers.

For the last two weeks 47 teenage mothers that choose craft shoe making have been undergoing vigorous training by GEDA Uganda trainers. The happy and hopeful teenage mothers completed their skilling last week August 23rd 2021 with a ray of hope. Each trainee was able to complete atleast one pair of shoe. The skilling sessions were accompanied by inspirational talks by GEDA staff.

The teenage mothers have also been promised to be given start up kits for them to start a new life and GEDA Uganda will deliver them as soon as they’re ready.

Meanwhile another group of teenage mothers training in tailoring that started earlier is still under going training since that takes some time. The progress is promising and they will soon complete. GEDA Uganda donated a sewing machine to this group that will help them continue with trainings and earning a living even when the trainings are long ended.

It is our responsibility me and you to end child marriage, teenage pregnancies and GBV by performing our roles.

A cross section of teenage mothers celebrating after completion of their training.

GEDA Uganda kick starts the shoe making and knitting program for the teenage mothers.

Earlier this year, we embarked on bringing hope to the teenage mothers in the region. The covid-19 pandemic did not only leave school going girls idle at home but also created more harm and some of these were impregnanted. The would be fathers of the children have since left the teenage mothers struggling to fend for their children and themselves.

At Gender-Environment and Development Action, we started on sessions to bring hope to these young girls, inspirational talks but also skilling for for self-reliance and improved livelihood.

Earlier this month our skilling program started with tailoring skills that are currently on-going with the Kidodo young mothers group.

This week shoe making and Knitting has kick started with another beneficiary group in Nyamwamba Division -Kasese District.

Out trainers are on ground and the training is steadily progressing well…

Details to come…

NEWS BRIEF: GEDA Uganda launches the skilling teenage mothers project in Kasese

Globally, it is estimated that over 2 million girls give birth before they turn 15 each year. That is equal to 5,500 very young girls a day who go directly from childhood to motherhood. These teenage mothers are often out of school, married and exposed to several economic hardships that make their lives complicated and yet they have lives to take care of thereby making their children prone to malnutrition and in extreme cases death. Kasese District is not exceptional of these challenges.

It is against this background that Gender-Environment and Development Action launched a project called “Empowering teenage mothers with skills for self-reliance and improved livelihood” in Kasese Municipality.

The project will benefit 90 teenage mothers in the municipality of Kasese in the skills namely knitting, tailoring, and shoe making.

speaking at the launch the Managing Director GEDA Uganda promised and gave hope to the teenage mothers and told them GEDA Uganda will support them to realise their vison and goals, the teenage mothers group called Kidodo young mothers appreciated GEDA Uganda’s efforts to support.

GEDA Uganda donated one sewing machine and other training materials like scissors, clothes, etc to the group and promised to support even further

Details to come

Skilling teenage mothers for Adaptation to COVID-19 effects in Kasese

In Uganda like elsewhere around the world, Covid-19 has led to an increase in teenage pregnancy. In order to gain basic necessities like sanitary towels, girls have engaged in negative coping mechanisms like transactional sex with men who took advantage of their need for money. Teenage pregnancies, among other factors is increasing the number of girls not in school. 98 million adolescent girls worldwide  were not in school before COVID yet an additional 20 million is projected to be added due to the COVID-19 pandemic.  Kasese District in western Uganda ranks highly in the magnitude of early marriages and teenage pregnancies rooted within the cultural norms with research evidence revealing that 52% of women aged 18-67 had prior teenage pregnancy. The situation was worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic lock down that led to the closure of schools.

Data from the District health, education and probation offices show that in July 2020, 2,372 school going girls conceived and 128 married off during the lock down in only 10 Districts, Kasese inclusive. This was partly attributed to the lockdown that created more redundant time for the learners, who ideally were supposed to be engrossed in the government’s e-learning program.

It is against this background that Gender-Environment and Development Action started the skilling programme for teenage mothers to equip them with life skills to help them function independently as adults and parents. The programme is targeting 10 groups of teenage mothers with a total membership of 300 in Kasese District Western Uganda.

The programme kicked off with training of 21 teenage mothers in menstrual hygiene management that focused on making of reusable sanitary pads. The 21 trainees are form from Kasese Municipal teenage mothers group that has a membership of 35 aged 14 – 20, all having babies aged 0-1 year.  This is an indication that all these conceived during the lockdown. The training in making of reusable sanitary pads was conducted by Ms.Kidima Margret of GEDA Uganda in Kidodo cell, Central Division, Kasese Municipality where the group members reside. The training was practical and by the end of the training session each participant was able to make 2 reusable sanitary pads.

During the training the young mothers in the their words appreciated Gender-Environment and Development Action for the work done and one of trainees aged  16 years had this to say “this skill is going to help me make my own pads for use and some for sale that will me help me buy soap and other small basic needs for my baby”, she however appealed to GEDA and other development partners to support them with more skills like tailoring, shoe making, knitting among others that will help  them generate income to take care of themselves and their babies. She further added that that given an opportunity, she would go back to school.

In attendance was the Community Development officer from Kasese Municipality who thanked GEDA-Uganda for the support and requested for more skilling trainings for the adolescent mothers. The training also integrated a module on the basic of GBV and VAC prevention and response. GEDA- Uganda Shared their tool free line number 0800100029 with the teenage mothers to report any cases of GBV and VAC and as well report any challenges that they service for timely response and referral.

There an urgent call for Government and other development partners to support life skilling for teenage mothers to help them function independently as adults and as parents to take good care of their children and as well be economically empowered to resist any further negative coping mechanism that lead to viscous cycle of teenage pregnancies, poverty and malnutrition.

GEDA has a comprehensive training manual for teenage mothers with modules on  self-realization, skilling,  psychosocial support, parenting, reproductive health,  nutrition for lactating and children below 5years , financial inclusion and protection for delivery of a comprehensive training package.