Hope For Girls Education (HOGE)

1. Mitigating barriers women and girls are facing in accessing Sexual reproductive health rights (SRHR) Services in rural areas of thyolo :Despite the interventions of several human rights towards SRHR Girls/women are facing challenges to access SRHR services due to the following reasons: 

(a). religious beliefs that deny women/girls from accessing SRHR                           services.   

(b).  Lack of professionalism/confidentiality by healthy workers. 

(c).  Long distances women/girls walk to access SRHR services

(d). Restrict laws, policies and entrenched traditions. 

(c). Lack of male involvement in SRHR due to culture belief and tradition. prevailing in the area.  

2. The following will be the solutions 

(a). Provision of youth friendly health centers that have well trained health workers who values professionalism and confidentiality.

(b). Training communities about the importance SRH services  

3.Higher population of Girls/women will be attending Hospitals due to well trained health workers who values professionalism and confidentiality. 

According to statistics in the Malawi Demographic and Health Survey (DHS 2015-2016.Proportion of women and new born babies receiving postnatal care during the first 48 hours is 42% and 60%, respectively.The proportion of pregnancies among the 15-19 year olds is 29%. The unmet needs for family planning among the married are 19% and among the unmarried is at 40%. The proportion of pregnant women that are abused by their husbands is at 5%. There is a need to improve these SRHR statistics to promote good health among Malawians.This is to say that only 17%  of women and girls in the rural areas of thyolo are able to access the good services. 

While SRHR are a universal right, this is not the case in most rural areas in Malawi especially in Thyolo district which will be the focus district for the intervention due to a myriad of challenges. According to a survey which was conducted by Hope for Girls Education (HOGE) “women and girls knowledge on family planning methods related to education” 

The following were some of the barriers we found out as affecting access to SRHR: 

1.  religious believes which prevents young women from accessing SRHR services 

Most Girls in rural areas of thyolo become pregnant within the ages of 10-14 because they lack information on education and counselling as appropriate on human sexuality and reproductive health,On the other hand women bear many children without child spacing due to the lack of knowledge on family planning methods. Hope for girls education(HOGE) is implementing a project called ''free access to SRHR to all''  that targets higher numbers of women and girls seeking SRHR services.

This project aims at teaching girls and women in the rural areas of thyolo about the importance of seeking SRHR services Disregarding social religion and cultural believes being the main contributors to sexual and reproductive ill health.

This project is evaluated using human rights based approach gender equality and cultural sensitivity: 

in addressing the problem HOGE will apply the principals mentioned above in understanding that every individual has a right to access SRHR services without been criticism. 

Provision of youth friendly services: this is another terminology used to address the issues of SRHR where its focus is to attain social participation in accessing SRRH services.  

(a) The girls and women who lack knowledge on how to access sexual reproductive health services and facilities. 

(b) 

1. We have trained community committees(mulambala,thunga,chinkwende and nkaombe) on importance of accessing SRH services with  the aim that  the committees will go and teach in the communities where they are coming from on the importance of accessing SRH services. 
2. Civic education to the girls on stages involved from puberty to adulthood(Sexual life related to pregnancies and family)
3. Community sensitization on SRHR related to girl child education 

We are working with Girls/women,traditional leaders,teachers and community members  in every activity organized in order to achieve social participation and community support.   

(c) 

1. The capacity of Women and girl are attending SRHR services will strengthened because women and girls  are given information on sexual reproductive and their rights.
2. The project will broaden the knowledge of women and girls in such a way that they will be able to disseminate knowledge in other communities close to them.  

There is a greater relationship  between the selected challenge and some of the provided solution in the sense that HOPE for girls education focuses much on increasing number of girls in rural areas who are attending schools from primary to secondaries and have the capabilities to read and interpret issues that affects their daily well being .

among some of the important issues that HOPE FOR GIRLS EDUCATION EDUCATION (HOGE) dwells on, is girl child education  related to a good choice on sexual reproductive and related issues.

• Hope For Girls Education (HOGE) project currently serves 300 girls 16 teachers ,12 traditional leaders and 200 community members including women

By the end of one year the organization target to have 1000 plus girls in the rural areas of Blantyre as well as thyolo ,500 community members ,43 traditional leaders from both district Blantyre and  thyolo

In five years to come HOGE shall have a minimum number of 6000 girls ,4000 women and 5500 community members in support of our projects

• To reduce number of girls staying out of school :we believe that only a better health person  can bring an impact to the community ,district, country and nation as a whole  so through the provision of these youth friendly health centres young girls will be given guidance on sexual and other related issues in such a way instead of dropping out of school they will be able to consider other options rather then drop out.
• Addressing the issues of sexual and reproductive health and rights to both girls and women in the communities.

                HOGE as an organization would continue teaching girls and women about the advantages of accessing SRHR services.

In addition, the teaching shall be conducted by the fellow youths so that young girls should be flexible enough to probe more on some of the issues affecting them in their daily lives

3. Economic empowerment to girls and women in the communities so that we reduce the number of girls dropping out of school due to poverty, early childhood marriages, unprepared pregnancies and harmful cultural practices 

• Persistent cultural and religious beliefs that are denying women and girls from accessing SRHR services: the rural areas of thyolo women are failing to access SRHR services because they believe SRHR services will shutter their childbearing process whilst other churches believe it is a sin before God to seek these services. Moreover, young girls are afraid to seek SRHR services because they are afraid to be disowned by their parent who believes that not every young woman can access SRHR services.
• Lack of financial support : HOGE as an organization does not have enough resources that can support higher number of girls who are unable to access the services
• Lack of transport: we have that capacity in addressing young girls, women and community members on the issues of SRHR but one of our greater challenge is lack of transportation to our targeted areas.

• Persistent cultural /religious believes

This problem can only be solved through:

• Community sensitization on the importance of accessing SRHR services
• Strengthening the capacities of the youth friendly health centers

ITEM

AMOUNT IN MK

AMOUNT $

Transport for staff

70,000

95

Food for participants

300,000

407

Transport refund

200,000

271

Books and pens

150,000

303

Masking tape

4000

5

Box of markers

3500

5

Staff periderm

60,000

82

Total

78500

1069

This is important as far as lives of young girls and women are concerned because no one would want a life that will be criticized by elderly community members after receiving SRHR services.

B. lack of financial support: this continues to be a problem in the sense that for us to conduct our daily activities will require mode of transport to move us through all our daily plans.

This problem can only be solved if the organization is provided with a car

C. lack of financial support: this can be solved through provison of finances to the organization to continue with its activities, which are in education, health and social wellbeing of young girls and women

Total amount of money that can be provided towards transportation and other activities 7,334,000 in Malawi kwacha and 9963 $.

FULL TIME STAFF

Six people are working on full time bases in our organization where they are involved in the planning and carrying out of the organization daily activities.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

We have a board of eight directors where we report all the organization activities and implementations

VOLUNTEERS

We also have three volunteers who are also working with us in project planning implementation and evaluations

Hope for girls education partnered up with Blantyre social welfare ,thyolo social welfare and connector Malawi in such a way that we are able to conduct our activities and projects through this collaborative effort.

We have attained so many connections from this reunions