By Winnie Adhiambo | Finance and Administration Officer
Centering Girls' Voices in School Re-Entry and Re-Integration
Overview
In Q2 2025, NIGEE took part in a national stakeholder forum reviewing the implementation of Kenya’s 2020 School Re-Entry Guidelines from a comparative lens with other global, regional and policy frameworks. The event brought together key actors from national and county government departments in education, health, gender, and youth to explore policy gaps and opportunities for improved support to adolescent girls, especially teen mothers.
Key Spotlight: A beneficiary’s Voice
One of our beneficiaries shared her personal experience of dropping out due to pregnancy and her challenging journey back to school. She highlighted the stigma she faces,"When I walk into a room, the first thing people see is a teen mum,” and called for more compassionate, flexible and sustainable systems. After the share, there was a panel discussion on the various barriers to school re-entry and how stakeholders such as parents, teachers, policy maker can better support re-entry and retention.
Key Takeaways
-Human-Centered Policy: The beneficiary’s story emphasized the need to embed lived experiences in policy design and implementation
-Support Systems: Stakeholders emphasized the need for school-based counseling, childcare, and adaptable school policies.
-Multi-Sector Collaboration: A coordinated approach across education, health, and social sectors was recommended.
-Innovative Outreach: Ministry circulars and youth-friendly platforms like TikTok and community events were identified as tools for better dissemination of re-entry guidelines.
Next Steps
-Amplify more lived experience to influence policy and public perception.
-Strengthen grassroots awareness and accessibility of the re-entry guidelines.
-Advocate for holistic, school-based support to ensure retention and re-integration.
Project reports on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.org by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.
If you donate to this project or have donated to this project, you can receive an email when this project posts a report. You can also subscribe for reports without donating.
Support this important cause by creating a personalized fundraising page.
Start a Fundraiser
