By Jessica Love | Executive Director
When schools closed in March due to COVID-19, our locally-led sister organizaiton and implementation partner, GLAMI (Girls Livelihood and Mentorship Initiative, formerly AfricAid Tanzania) pivoted quickly to support Scholars by phone and text.
As part of efforts during the past two years to improve communication with parents of girls in our programs, contact information is now on file for nearly 6,000 families. That enabled our mentors to make and track regular contacts by phone and text while schools were closed, tallying 18,000 phone calls and more than 193,608 text messages in under three months.
Two toll-free lines were established so any Scholar could reach out for assistance or support without needing a personal phone. WhatsApp study groups were formed to help keep girls connected with their Mentors, and study materials were provided to girls who needed textbooks and other items to prepare for their final exams. When schools prepared to reopen, GLAMI kept Scholars safe by providing cleaning supplies, handwashing stations and other materials to Partner Schools.
Since schools in Tanzania reopened on June 29, GLAMI only recorded 32 dropouts; meaning that of 6,619 girls enrolled in mentoring programs this year, 99% returned to their education after schools reopened. A remarkable figure - and a rate of return that is higher than GLAMI typically sees after school holidays. Read more about what they did to support girls return to school in this U.S. News & World Report article.
All of this work made possible because of generous donors like you!
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