Empower Girls in Uganda with Menstrual Health

"I just want to give back," Lydia says from her small village of Budondo, Iganga District in Uganda. At the age of 7, Lydia’s father travelled to Russia for work, leaving Lydia with her younger brother Dennis, and their mother. While they missed their father terribly (and he missed them too!), and it was often difficult to pay for school fees and put food on the table, they found tremendous support in their community. With her father’s hard work, Lydia was able to graduate from high school (one of the few girls in her community to do so) and even made it to University in the capital city, Kampala.

Once there, she struggled to pay the fees. She did a short tailoring program and realized she could use this skill to help raise money for school. She managed to convince her school to hire her to make the graduation gowns and she sewed many with a few of her friends. With that income, she was able to support herself throughout University and graduated! The support she had from her community as a child was her primary motivation to return to her home village after graduating. She wanted to give back.

When Lydia learned about the Days for Girls training program, she knew it was the perfect match for her community. She joined in the training and made a beautiful kit for herself. After completing the training, she raised enough money to purchase materials and train high school students in her community to make kits for themselves. She plans to use this skill to start a small business at their community health center in January so that they can reach as many women as possible with this solution.

Meanwhile, in the first week of December Uganda conducted their last scheduled training of 2014. The DfGU team traveled to Lira, a beautiful town in Northern Uganda, to conduct a Kit Business training. This training was hosted by Children of Peace, and brought together 30 young women to learn reproductive health, kit making, soap making, and business skills. Days for Girls partners with many such wonderful organizations. These women were affected by the war in the early 2000s, and Children of Peace has provided them with opportunities to learn, grow and become ambassadors of peace going forward. The ladies were attentive and ready to learn Days for Girls Ambassador of Women's Health program, and they also lead some memorable singing and dancing sessions during our breaks.

Here is the story of Dilish, just one of the women there:

Dilish is a quiet and beautiful young woman from Lira district. Just speaking with her one would never guess the horrible violence she experienced at the hands of the Lords Resistance Army (LRA) during the war in Northern Uganda. As a child she was kidnapped by the LRA and held for years. During this time, she lost most of her family. When she finally managed to escape, she found herself with no parents or guardians and many young siblings to care for. Today, at the age of 16, she is the head of her household.

Although she receives an educational scholarship from Children of Peace Uganda, she struggles to pay for other household essentials. Due to these difficult circumstances, pads are often low of the list of priorities and she finds herself with nothing to use during menstruation. She has primarily been using old rags or underwear as her menstrual hygiene solution, which leaves her vulnerable to leakages, stains, and infections. Dilish joined the Days for Girls training and was so excited to have her very own kit! She has even mastered the sewing machine and helped many of her fellow classmates complete the sewing of their own Days for Girls kits. She says that one day, she would like to become a Days for Girls trainer so that she can teach others these kinds of life-changing skills!

Planning for 2015

This has been an amazing year of learning, growth, opportunities, challenges, and accomplishments. We have come a long way from where we started thanks to the dedication of our team, the excitement of our communities, and the support of Global Giving and our amazing partners!! Leaders from many nations are scheduling visits to DfG Uganda to learn to replicate components of our programs in their areas. We are ready for 2015 and can’t wait to share with you many more of the stories of the girls and women we serve! Thank you for making so much possible.

With gratitude,

Libby