GIRLS LEADERSHIP TRAINING

The Project

To empower girls aged 13-18 years in leadership, building of foundations, fostering life engagement in peace building, good governance, human rights, financial literacy, female health, entrepreneurship, and community connections among others to give young women the tools, skills and information to become responsible and accountable adults.

1. The young women will be equipped with strong leadership’s kills and knowledge of initiating positive change in their communities through participation and decision-making.
2. Allow the girls to explore, discover and develop their skills and strengths of themselves and the world around them.
3. Give young women an equal opportunity to become effective leaders.
4. Gain knowledge on legal rights issues concerning them while creating reliable persons as they facilitate the process of national building and development.
5. Acquire greater understanding on finances, health, media, entrepreneurship, and community connections with the aim of poverty eradication.
6. Empowering them to share gained knowledge through initiating activities that help uplift the sector, integral for a developing nation, Kenya

Context

Young people aged 10-24 years in Kenya constitute about 36 % of the population Nonetheless, they experience some of the worst Reproductive Health outcomes:

• Teenage Pregnancy – 18% (KDHS 2014)
• Girls seek care for abortion
• High unmet need for FP (23% in 2014) is highest compared to other age groups (national average 18%)
• ANC attendance and skilled attendant deliveries – 49% of adolescent mothers under 20 years of age achieved 4 or more ANC visits, compared with 60% for those 20-34 years
• MMR twice as high in women 15-19 compared to those 20-34 year olds
• 51% of new HIV infections and 13% of AIDS related deaths occur among young people between 15-24 years (NACC, 2015)
• 5% of girls and 2.7% of boys aged 15-19 years have ever experienced sexual violence (KDHS,2014)
• FGM prevalence among girls aged 15-19 years is 11% (KDHS, 2014)
• Drugs and substance abuse: (NACADA, 2012) 18% of adolescents 15-17 yrs. reported ever using any drug. Specifically 2% of females and 4% of males 10-14 yrs. and about 11% of 15-17 yrs. reported ever using alcohol

Methods of implementing the project

SI Eldoret Club through the Ministry of Education will invite 150 girls from all the counties in Kenya.

Girls will be provided for transport from their counties to the location of the training (Lugari Community Resource Centre) in Lugari Sub-County in western Kenya

Keynote speakers will be present to inspire the young women to be strong and confident change makers. The presenters who are all women are experts in their professional fields and include and not limited to: law enforcement, medical professionals, accounting specialists, business executives, political leaders, legal experts and community development pioneers. The program also welcomes volunteer speakers and mentors from both local and international communities.

Expected outcomes

The participants are guided to identify critical necessities in their communities, develop a business plan addressing the issue and learn how to implement the plan upon return to their homes and schools.

They are required to recruit fellow students and form peer groups where they address social-economic challenges like Early marriages/pregnancies, Female Genital Mutilation, Menstrual Hygiene Management, HIV/AIDS, Environmental conservation, Gender-Based violence, rape, self-defense and Conflict resolution. Each participant is required to recruit 15 peers at school and the same number at homes. As young mentors they will become ambassadors of change  by advocating for gender equality and  a better socio economic  environment for women and girls  which would result to happier and healthy families

The knowledge gained from the training will benefit 150 girls from 75 schools with average of 600 students impacting directly or indirectly over 45000 students in schools and over 2500 community members including the parents.

Evaluation – Follow-up

The participants are guided to identify a critical necessity in their communities, develop a business plan addressing the issue and learn how to implement the plan upon their return home. Each participant submits progress reports on her selected project throughout the following year. The participants, after completion of the training are expected to apply what they have learnt to implement projects that serve the needs in their communities and become catalysts of positive change as peace builders, social innovators and global citizens. During monitoring and evaluation, 20 students with excelling projects are re-invited as role models and mentors to the groups attending future trainings.

Partners

SI Eldoret members together with community members and the all schools whose girls will participate will work hand in hand to ensure success of the project and continuous follow up.

Thank you to the following Clubs/Unions: