Komera Impact Report: Fall 2021
We are so proud of the strides our girls have made over the past few months, against the odds. Here are some updates on our programs.
HEALTH
Our Teen Mother program focuses on improving the social wellbeing of teen mothers through weekly trainings in self-acceptance, economic empowerment, yoga and meditation, family planning and more. All of this is aimed at rebuilding lost self-esteem. Due to the high demand, the number of participants increased from 75 to 120 this year and was implemented with the support of community mentors who reached the teen mothers in their weekly and monthly meetings through home visits. There has also been continuous support provided to the teen mothers who had joined the program three years prior through savings clubs to help them continue growing their businesses.
We’re happy to report that 95% of participants reported improved confidence and 97% were able to make decisions about their lives, such as acquiring family planning support and becoming involved in community leadership, following the program.
In partnership with Girl Effect, we carried out a campaign on improving the nutrition of the children of teen mothers by teaching them best practices on food preparation for children and providing each of them with a booklet including the lessons taught. The campaign finished at the end of June with each family receiving a basin and jerrycan for staying healthy during the pandemic. All 120 participants received startup capital by the end of June for their businesses, which continue to grow and prosper.
EDUCATION
Even during the challenging COVID-19 pandemic, we have made several accomplishments including achieving 99% school retention for secondary scholars. We have also found that among our post-secondary beneficiaries, 98% reported to now have confidence and self-belief. The education scholarship program supports 176 scholars from secondary to university, including 83 in secondary, 20 in post- secondary and 73 in university. Since the beginning of the year, many activities have been accomplished under this program to support our scholars including leadership camps, mentor trainings, home and school visits among others.
This year, our Secondary Scholarship program has supported 83 scholars in upper secondary school with school fees, materials and transportation to and from school for two terms since January 2021. Our students are also supported by a full-time school-based mentor and each receive health insurance for herself and her family. We are thrilled to share that this support has led to a 99% school retention rate! We’re also proud of how well our scholars have done academically, with 80% of students scoring 60% and above on their annual promotional exams.
Of these secondary scholarship recipients, 99% participated in a three-day in-house leadership training in April 2021 and attended an online camp facilitated by our staff due to the lockdown. Our Leadership Camp and mentorship sessions focus on mental, physical and psycho-social support, sexual and reproductive health and rights, life skills, career guidance and more. We’re happy that 27% of our scholars on full scholarship currently hold leadership positions in their schools and communities. Additionally, 91% of the leadership camp participants were found to understand how to avoid unplanned pregnancies and 93% said they are willing to report sexual violence if it occurs. Komera mentors continued to meet girls even during the lockdown.
In partnership with Creative Action Institute, we introduced the Sauti Ya Dada clubs in our partnership schools in order to transform unhealthy gender norms and stereotypes that put girls at risk. The clubs include trainings for mentors so they know how to empower adolescent girls in our program to become more confident and resilient young women.
Our Leadership Camps have given our girls the opportunity to learn more about advocacy and social change so that they can lift up their own families and communities. One of the eight secondary scholars leading activities related to social change is a scholar named Solange. “I am committed to my education and I want to empower others around me with the lessons I learn from the Komera Leadership Camps,” she told us.
“I am committed to my education and I want to empower others around me with the lessons I learn from the Komera Leadership Camps,”
The Post-Secondary program supports 20 scholars who completed high school, but weren’t able to start their university studies. Included in this group are seven former Komera scholars whose program was interrupted by the pandemic and 13 from the community who applied for the program in 2019, but were not able to join due to limited spots available. In January 2021, the scholars attended a six month long training opportunity that Komera held in partnership with The Streets Ahead Children’s Centre Association (SACCA). This vocational training opportunity provides the girls with practical skills in hairdressing and hospitality in addition to the lessons they learned while in school and in the Komera transition program. The opportunity included five months of training in business development and management and provided life skills, career guidance and more. After the five months, they embarked on a month-long internship to test the skills they learned. Most scholars have different business plans and will be given toolkits after thorough discussion and guidance. One of the scholars is already placed in the hotel where she has held an internship!
Since January of this year, 73 students supported by Komers have continued with their university education even amidst the pandemic. The students received tuition, room and board, monthly upkeep and constant guidance to continue their studies online. Out of the 73 students, six have graduate and 10 are ready to graduate following the lockdown. We’re thrilled that three of the six graduates are now fully employed and one graduate is completing part-time work!
One of our university graduates is Assephash who graduated in May. She is already working as a power plant officer in the western region of Rwanda. “I’m happy that I’m already employed at the power plant here in Musanze district as an officer, putting my skills to work,” she told us. “Komera contributed so much in making me achieve my goal and I’m grateful to all the sponsors for believing in us.”
COMMUNITY
Our Community Development programs aim to uplift the society our girls grow up in to create impact for their families and neighborhoods.
The School Empowerment Project supported 160 adolescent girls in four public schools until the end of June with its main objective being to improve the attitude of the girls towards education and reduce school dropout rates. We do this by building the self-belief of the girls, empowering them with the skills, knowledge and tools they need in sexual and reproductive health and rights, and training the girls in problem solving, decision making, and advocacy. These elements are implemented through continuous weekly trainings using sports, coaching and school mentorship strategies with two female mentors. Over nine months, we carried out weekly school-based training on sexual and reproductive health and rights, leadership and economic empowerment and also provided career guidance for the girls. All 160 girls received full school uniforms through our partnership with Tailored for Education, and Komera provided feminine hygiene products for them each month. Four girls’ rooms were also equipped with sanitary towels in each of the schools.
We’re happy to share that 98% of these girls completed the full year in our program. “Because of the prolonged holiday due to the pandemic, most girls in our communities had started getting married and getting pregnant because they had lost hope of continuing with their education,” one of them told us.
“When Komera came, we regained our hope. Komera taught us about our reproductive system, how to avoid teenage pregnancy, our goals and we now know where we want to be in future, even amidst challenges. Our vulnerability should not be a limit to our education!”
The results of the program are exciting with 81% of these girls reporting their willingness to take on leadership positions in their schools and community, 91% of participants knowing how to avoid unplanned pregnancies and 93% reporting a willingness to report sexual violence. In addition, the girls learned skills in social change and economic empowerment in order to approach challenges to their education such as how to obtain school materials from the small savings instead of dropping out of schools. Scholars also supported the construction of a home for one of the students in their school who was homeless by making bricks, which were used to build the structure. We look forward to welcoming the next cohort of girls and boys in our School Empowerment program in October this year.
Several activities have been carried out for the Parents and Guardians Cooperative including the cooperatives meeting in small groups, and resuming the leadership council in meetings for May and June. The main objective was to put the cooperative online so they are able to stay connected during COVID-19 lockdowns when in-person meetings are prohibited. During the meetings, every group leader was able to explain how their group was doing and discussed the monthly contribution of each group members. The meeting was concluded by cross-checking the groups with loans and looking at the cooperative account debts and savings. We are proud of the dedication of parents during these challenging times and look forward to continue to support them with business development training so their businesses can flourish!