Support 225 adolescent mothers to thrive in Uganda

This month our project team in Uganda sent us this report from a young girl who has been touched and helped with your support. 

"I am Jessica, a 20 year old girl and a resident of Bugadde, Mayuge district .  As a teenager, while in school, I was lured by a young man who promised me favors if I gave in for sex. Coming from a very poor home with poor parents who could hardly afford to meet my basic needs s as a girl, I thought this young man was a long-awaited dream come true, that I could not afford losing.

My desperation for money and a better life, resulted into a pregnancy and thus an expulsion from school for having been found to be pregnant.   I could not bear the shame and disappointment  I  had caused to my parents  and siblings as a result of my reckless behavior, since they had a lot of hope in me  as the first born. Worst of all, the man who had lured me and was responsible for the pregnancy later denied responsibility to care for me and the baby.

Left with no options amidst extreme struggles and poverty to care of myself and the baby, I told my ordeal to a friend who had been through a slightly similar situation like I was going through. She introduced me to Act4Africa, whose program I have found extremely helpful and has shaped what I am today. 

I am part of the Act4Africa’s women savings groups, through their Health Education and Livelihoods project, and am extremely thankful that the project has economically uplifted my economic status and also empowered me with life skills. Through the knowledge I have acquired, I am running my own personal piggery which has enabled me take care of myself, baby and to also support my siblings. Thank you Act4Africa".