Empowerment of Teenage Mothers

Many girls in the urban poor and rural areas in Kenya miss up to a week of
school every month during menstruation due to lack of sanitary towels. Any
teacher in Kenya will tell you, a girl without access to sanitary towels feels
embarrassed, unhygienic and uncomfortable, she also loses self esteem and with
that the confidence to interact with her classmates, or with teachers in the classroom.
Most of the schools are mixed schools and this put stigma on the girls who feel
unhygienic.

Sanitary towels, therefore, are a serious education issue in Kenya.

A girl absent from school for four days in 28 days (a month) loses 13
learning days equivalent to two weeks of learning in every school term. In an
academic year (nine months) a girl loses 39 learning days equivalent to six
weeks of learning time. A girl in primary school between grades 6 and 8 (three
years) loses 18 learning weeks out of 108 weeks. Within the four years of high
school a girl can lose 156 learning days equivalent to almost 24 weeks out of
144 weeks of learning in High school!

Hope for Teenage Mothers has reinvented reusable and easy to afford sanitary
pads made from cotton material. The girls from Mukuru slums are now making
their own Sanitary pads and selling at an affordable fee of Ksh 25/=.  These pads are also being distributed for
free to the neighboring schools.

We are asking our friends and partners to come join with us in this dynamic
challenge by donating to us so that we can buy more materials to make more reusable
sanitary pads.

One of the school girls called Joyce from Katoto primary school said. ‘I am not going to miss out on school again.
The pad is good and I like it.’  

Links:

• search for us on google

Happy New year-2012!

Thank you to all our donors and supporters.Year 2011 was a great year for Hope for Teenage Mothers-(Teenage
mothers Empowerment project).The teenage mums have various success stories because of
your continuous generosity to our community .

The project graduated 42 girls on Vocational class. The girls acquired various skills of beadworks, African bags making, tailoring, dressmaking, toys making and sanitary pads making. Some of the African bags and beadworks that the girls produced have been selling in the local and international markets.

Alimlim a beneficially of the sanitary pads training  said ‘I now make sanitary pads for myself and I
do not need to buy anymore.’ 
Another group of girls graduated in hairdressing coupled with Entrepreneurship training .They acquired various skills in the fields of manicure;pedicure and facial .Three of girls have opened small salons of their own. This
has enabled them to be Self -reliant and has given them a source of livelihoods for their families and children.     

 Main objectives for 2012:

1. To empower more girls through Non –formal Education and life skills training.
2. Encourage our supporters and donors to help us finish construction of a Multipurpose Centre for the most Vulnerable girls in Kenya.
3. Scale up making of sanitary pads and distribute them to poor girls in the secondary and primary schools in Kenya.

Appeals for the 2012:

We are asking our well wishers to partner with us in donating books for our library, materials for construction of classrooms,sinking of a borehole, tailoring machines, computers and volunteers.     

 Every support given will be highly appreciated. You can contact us directly on info@hopeforteenagemothers.org
or through global giving.

Thank you for your continued support to our young girls and our community as a whole.

Links:

• hopeforteenagemothers project in kenya