UG 26 - TALITHA KUM: A BETTER FUTURE FOR VULNERABLE GIRLS
Project Location
The project is carried out in Northern Uganda and precisely in Gulu and surroundings. The population resident in this area experienced decades of "persecution" and war, interrupted only for a short time in the early eighties of the last century. Then the HIV/AIDS pandemic plunged the population into an extremely vulnerable situation, characterized by high mortality and, as a result, by many orphaned children. In addition, in the following years the situation became even more dramatic due to the guerrilla warfare headed by Joseph Kony.
This led to unprecedented situations of violence, harassment, torture, mass destruction and kidnapping of children, the latter to be forced into becoming soldiers (the boys) and sexual slaves (the girls). The recent years of Covid-19 related lockdown have exacerbated an already complex and complicated social situation. With schools closed for almost two years and small businesses stopped, the financial conditions of families have worsened and there has been an increase in street children who find in their peers the security and support lacking in their families.
There has also been an exponential increase in pregnancies among adolescents, as well as of early school dropouts among girls who, in the current social context, are again the most at risk category.
Project description
Uganda’s women are the driving force of the country. They do all they can to access education, they cultivate the fields and above all they do not give up because of their inner strength. But being a woman is still a “challenge inside the challenge”: if more and more are trying to redeem themselves from a condition of economic and social disadvantage, the obstacles and difficulties to overcome are still many. Uganda counts a large number of vulnerable females, including single mothers, women affected by HIV/AIDS, victims of domestic violence and women living in extreme poverty. Moreover, many of them are illiterate or forced to drop out of school, they have no income generating resources and no opportunity to improve their status. They have no access to land and are often forced into early marriages - unions that in most cases end with separations and children to take care of themselves, exacerbating their vulnerability. This situation is also the result of social inequality and - above all - gender disparity.
For this reason, we need to support and help women to break the cycle of poverty. Investing in women’s empowerment means creating an essential prerequisite for poverty eradication and inclusive economic growth in a context where natural and environmental adversities are compounded by social, economic and cultural constraints. The project aims to support 10 vulnerable girls through a vocational training course (tailoring, hairstyling, catering) and the delivery of a practical starters' kit for income generating activities that can make them independent over time. During the year of project's implementation the girls will receive a contribution to nutrition and have their medical expenses covered. This additional support will allow the girls to focus on training activities and to subsequently start a small business of their own
Objectives
- To economically rehabilitate a group of 10 vulnerable girls
- To restore their self-reliance, dignity and confidence in the future.
Beneficiaries
Direct: a group of 10 girls
Indirect: their families and the whole of society
Referent sister for the project Sr. Giovanna Calabria
Project's costs