Empowerment Hub for Teenage Mothers

Diana 

Age :19 years old

Personal Goal
To work hard and become a great person in future to inspire other girls with the similar experience she has encountered.

Her story

Diana comes from a family of 7 and she is the second born child. Her mother is widow and her father passed on when she was very young. Her mother is the only soul bread winner and doesn’t have a stable formal employment to sustain the family. They depend on farming other people’s land during the planting season to earn a living to cater for their need which is seasonal. Diana has a two-year baby girl and she dropped out of school in class 7 when she was 16 years old. She was constantly repeating in school because of lack of school fees as most of the time she was been sent home because of school fess arrears. This explains why she was behind in terms of completing her education compared to her peers. Her journey has been tough and sad since she was taken in by the parents of her father’s daughter (who is was also a teenager) when she got pregnant. Due to constant frustration she left that place went back to her mother house after her daughter was 7months.It has been challenging for to raise her only daughter and it pushed her to join her mother in tilling other peoples land to fend for her daughter and sibling after she realized there is no other option left for her to pursue.
This program will help her gain skill for her to venture into her own business in future and earn an honest living for her child and help her younger siblings get education.

Hobbies
Sports especially playing football and running marathons.

This project targets young teen mother who have dropped out of school in different counties. The goal of the project is to equip the young girls with skills and expertise to enable to earn a living and change their live and support their children.

The project has not reached the targeted amount of funding a lot of support is needed and urgently. The second  phase of the project, 3 girls have been identified and in-cooperated in the project in Homabay county to pursue hair dressing training at elegance hair saloon in a period of 6 months.

The girls have had difficult experiences as teen mothers below are a summary of their stories. (The names have been change to protect their identities).This project has become an eye opener to them personally and their peers because these initiatives has given them hope and opportunity to explore their potential and become an example to their communities that their dreams are valid.

Susan was born in a family of 4 and she is the third born in the family. Her father passed on when she very young. She dropped out of school at the age of 11 after she got pregnant. The child passed on a month later after birth of which no explanation was given to her because she was young and experiencing post natal depression. She was later taken to her Aunt’s place to work as a house help since her mother is a widow and unemployed and could not support her and her sibling. Currently she is residing with her Aunt who has taken her in to work for her until she becomes stable and be independent.

Susan has embraced this initiative because it will give her an opportunity to build her skills and have bright future a head and become independent.

Personal Mission:                 

 To work hard, learn and improve her life, and be able to be support her siblings and mother

Hobbies:  Singing and dancing

Jane is born in a family of 6 and she is the 4^th born child. Her mother is widow and unemployed living in the village, due to poverty her mother was pushed to enter into an illegal business of selling traditional illicit brew to support her family. Jane dropped out of school at the age of 13 years due to lack of school and later got pregnant at the age of 16 years. She was forced to join her mother’s business to earn a living and support her child.         She was later picked by one of her Aunt who felt she was not in a conducive environment as a girl child. Her Aunt took her in to avoid her being vulnerable to Gender based violence while working with her mum.

This initiative will help her gain skills to be to earn a living and support her child, become sustainable and help her mother.

Personal Mission:                 

 To acquire skills to enable her support her child and mum to have a great future.

Hobbies: Singing, sports and listening

Emily was born in a family of 5.She lost her father when she was very young and she has known her mother as the only bread winner all her life. Her mum leaves in the village and is a part time house help which cannot be enough to cater for their needs as a family. Currently she is 8 month pregnant and working as a house help to raise money for her coming baby while leaving with a relative.

This initiative has come as a blessing being that she loves hair dressing it will help her enhance her skills and become better and earn a living to support her child when he is born.

Personal Mission:                 

 To be successful in everything she does and become a great person in future.

Hobbies: Listening to music, hair dressing and watching African movies