Support 100 vulnerable rural girls keep in school

The closure of schools to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in Uganda and the subsequent economic hardships in many families of orphans and vulnerable children   has put many children, especially adolescent girls, under intense mental distress, anxiety and frustration. It should be noted that since the COVID-19 outbreak in March 2020, many children have never stepped again in classrooms. On top of restricting     their access to learning which is a fundamental human right for children, the lockdown has also limited the children’s interactions with peers which has again increased more of their frustrations and anxiety to an extent that this situation has placed many of orphans and vulnerable children at risk of contracting sexually transmitted infections such as HIV/AIDS, having unwanted pregnancies and engaging in early marriages. Regrettably to say, many girls who have entered early marriages have become victims of gender- based violence and single mothers.

During this period, Empowerment for the Poor Uganda has been aiming at empowering children with psychosocial and resilience support to enable them doesn’t lose out on their education. We have organized psychosocial support sessions in which we have given children a chance and platform to interact with their peers as well as supporting them with key messages to enable them overcome stress and other psychological problems as well as in keeping them safe from early marriages, domestic violence and HIV infection. During this period under review , we have been able to reach out to  617 children with critical messages which  helped to revive the hope for education alive among these children . We have also distributed literacy materials to these children to enable them keep in school and disseminated messages and supplies to prevent their families from COVID-19 infection.

We thank our donors for your generosity and continued support which has enabled us reach at these milestones   because without your help, we would not have been here celebrating this achievement. We are greatly indebted for your generosity and kindness. We look forward to your continued support because in January 2022, schools will officially resume again but there are many children who will not be in position to afford school due to poverty. We hope that with your continued partnership, we shall be in position to enable orphans and vulnerable children access, retain and complete school. Thank you.

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