Escaping child marriage; Amina’s new found hope in Education

Butaleja district:❝ Before these sessions, I and many other girls in this community thought menstruation was a curse. However, the sessions helped me learn quite more about periods, and now I realize that periods are a body change that one has to undergo during the puberty stage. Learning how to manage menstruation properly has changed how I feel about myself and prepared myself for that. Now it’s something I am proud of. ❞ Musibika Laziya, 15 years old.

About the Youth Champions Challenging SRH Stigma (YCCSRHS) project in Butaleja. Funded by Cehurd under the small grant initiative and implemented by the Uganda Youth and Adolescent Health Forum (UYAHF), the 6-month YCCSRHS project has been a transformative initiative aimed at breaking the stigma surrounding SRH and fronting young people as agents of change while working with community-based organizations. In collaboration with Women with a Mission, several impactful sessions on menstrual hygiene were held at Budumba Health Center III, where girls were empowered with the knowledge and confidence to challenge societal taboos around menstrual health. Through these sessions, participants learned about proper menstrual care, reproductive health rights, and how to assertively advocate for their health needs, thereby fostering a more open and supportive environment for addressing menstrual hygiene issues in the community. The initiative has been pivotal in helping young girls not only manage their menstrual health but also embrace their roles as advocates for their reproductive well-being.