Access to Education for Girls in Thanda Pani, Pakistan

Village Thanda Pani is located in District Neelum along the Line of Control (LoC) approximately 135km upstream from Muzzafarabad, near village Dodnial. Thanda Pani is one of the most populated villages in the Neelum district with the fewest educational facilities, particularly for girls. Since Thanda Pana is so close to the line of control, it is a low priority for the government and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). There is extremely limited access. Currently, there are 2 primary schools for boys with none existing for girls. The existing schools are already overcrowded and due to persistent cultural norms, most inhabitants of Thanda Pani are against co-education so girls are not allowed to attend classes with boys.

Education is key to improved quality of life and female empowerment. The gender gap in Thanda Pani is widest in levels of literacy, school enrollment, dropout rates, and vocational training opportunities. While cultural norms exist around co-education, the population of Thanda Pani is not completely against young girls gaining an education. Findings of focus group discussions led by Community Services Program (CSP) in Thanda Pani revealed that 70-75% of school-age girls are not attending school primarily because of the lack of a facility.

CSP is proposing to create a branch of the Tine Girls Model School in Thanda Pani. CSP has located a facility to be rented as a girls’ primary school. The community will contribute to the rent. Teachers have been found in an adjacent village. The creation of this primary school will lower early marriage rates, empower the girls from a young age, and fight against the patriarchal norms in society.

Preventing Early and Forced Marriages in Malawi

Chitani Community Sustainable Development Organization (CHICOSUDO) is almost halfway through their 6-month project, End Child Marriage Now!!! Protect Her Rights. Their goal is to prevent 500 early and forced marriages by the end of March 2021.

Since September, they have held an orientation meeting, conducted needs assessment surveys, and completed three awareness campaigns.

Orientation Meeting

The orientation meeting was held with traditional leaders, community-based organization (CBO) members, village development committee members, a child protection worker, and the headteacher of Sukayakwe Primary School. The adoption of bylaws set, but not yet verified, by the Mulanje district council and how to reinforce them in the wider community were discussed. Capacity building with the traditional leaders increased as they agreed to work together with CHICOSUDO in the fight against child marriage.

Traditional Leaders attending the Orientation Meeting

“Traditional leaders are the key in the fight because they are gatekeepers and custodians of culture. Therefore, putting them in front is the key to promoting bylaws which were formed by different stakeholders in the area. At the same time, they are also the key to addressing harmful cultural norms that promote gender-based violence and violence against women and girls.”

— CHICOSUDO Executive Director, Mr. Samson W. Mulole

Mr. Bizwick Nakapa, Ntonya CBO Chair, speaking on the role they have in promoting bylaws to protect girls from early child marriage.

The Ntonya CBO strengthened their capacity building skills through greater knowledge of how to dissemintate information, taught by CHICOSUDO. According to Ntonya CBO Chair, Mr Bizwick Nakapa, “despite our efforts in promoting girls education in our respective villages, the [End Child Marriage Now!!! Protect Her Rights] campaign addressed the gaps, including capacity, financial and material, in support for the full implementation of the community bylaws. Although we were able to encourage parents to prioritize their girl child’s education, cases of child marriages were still happening. Now with the support available from CHICOSUDO and Rockflower, we are able to disseminate the bylaws so that more parents are able to know the consequences of child marriages”.

Needs Assessment Survey

A needs assessment survey was conducted using focus group discussions and in-depth interviews of 21 women and 11 men. The main aim of this was to assess the magnitude of early marriages in area, key drivers and how bylaws are used by both adolescence/girls and duty bearers. A total of 35 people were reached. Participants include: traditional leaders, head teachers, mothers groups representatives, CBO members, child protection workers, victim support unit, parents and guardians of girls 12 to 17 years old in and out of schools, and adolescent girls.

The survey found a high rate of childhood pregnancy and early marriages resulting in school dropout rates to increase. Almost 75% of parents interviewed confirmed child marriage is a prominent issue with negative impacts. These impacts include health implications. The Mulanje district has the highest HIV prevalance rate in Malawi at 21%. Cervical cancer rates are also high. In addition to health problems, 95% of respondents mentioned that girls who get married early are normally forced into poverty, experience abuse, lack an education, and more. 85% of parents interviewed expressed concern about girls moving back home with their children due to the marriage falling apart and their inability to find employment.

The key drivers of child marriage are cultural practices, economic pressures and lack of reproductive health education. There is a large gap around bylaws and their implementation by all parties that participated.

Focus Groups conducted for the Need Assessment Survey

Awareness Campaigns

Three awareness campaigns have been held. Read in-depth about one of the awareness campaigns held in October here.

Challenges and Recommendations

The COVID-19 pandemic has restricted gathering sizes causing CHICOSUDO to reorganize their efforts, but they continue to work diligently to reach their objectives. CBOs and traditional leaders had low capacity building skils before their trainings during and after the orientation meeting. Cultural norms continue to be challenging.

The project will continue by holding more awareness campaigns, in particular with CBOs and schools with constant access to adolescent children. Adolescent girls will be trained in peer education, reproductive health and rights to create opportunities to be change agents. The CBOs will be empowered to diseminate information regarding the advocacy focused community bylaws. Work with district leaders to formalize the bylaws. 5 CBO male members have been trained as protectors to counteract cultural norms.

Technology Has Proven to be Essential During this Pandemic, but How Do We Make Sure to Reach Those Women Who Lack Both Skills & Access?

Social distancing and remote work have become the norm as the world grapples with solutions to the COVID-19 pandemic. Collectively, our reliance on technology is greater than ever before and yet many still lack access to the most basic forms of equipment, knowledge and expertise. Many Syrian women face considerable roadblocks to meaningful and impactful participation in society, and having limited or no access to technology exacerbates the isolation and further impacts women’s labor force participation negatively.

The Center for Civil Society and Democracy have long been working to improve this technological gap. In March at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Rockflower partnered with them on a pilot project, Supporting Syrian Women to Have Access to Technology. The two main goals of this project were: to provide Syrian women with equipment and to train them to be digitally literate. Not only did the project achieve those objectives, but it also created a safe and supportive environment and expanded networks for women to stay connected during a trying time for so many.

The pilot project began by identifying 10 Syrian women living in Turkey to participate. First, they joined a WebEx group session to learn more about technology. A consultative approach was taken in the form of one-on-one online sessions between CCSD staff and the 10 participants to formulate what was needed most, which lead to the final decision on what the main projects would constitute.

Each participant received twelve 2 hour sessions, in which the topics included: the importance of technology, navigating the Internet, social media platforms, Microsoft Word and Excel application features and mentorship on final projects.

Four laptops were distributed to women who completed a satisfactory needs assessment and did not have regular access to a laptop. This pilot project found that Syrian women in Turkey have access to the Internet on their phones, but to provide greater economic empowerment computers are critically important.

The pilot project was a vital starting point to build on a program that will prove to be extremely beneficial for a number of Syrian women living in Turkey. These training sessions have already resulted in a job offer for one of the participants, a support network for the women involved, both professionally and personally, an increase in their confidence and knowledge and of course, the acquisition of new skills.

New developments for the continuation of the program have also occurred, including splitting the course into knowledge levels, the addition of courses such as Turkish language tutoring and project management, and flexible times to allow for maximum participation.

The next steps for the program are to distribute more laptops and work on the next round of courses. Rockflower looks forward to continuing to work with CCSD to make this a reality.

Participants and Training Facilitators during the Presentation of their Learnings for the Entire Program - August 2020

Slides from the E-Government Presentation

Five Women's Stories of Capital Investment through Save Society Foundation

Michael Ariamba, Founder and Executive Director of Save Society Foundation in South Sudan, sent us a report of five women’s stories. The seed money received from Rockflower has helped women with their businesses that needed an injection of capital that couldn’t request loans at nearby banks.

Khamisa Stephen - Restaurant in Hai Jabel

“My husband and I have seven children. We have struggled to raise them due to a lack of income, we can’t pay for their school fees or their health bills. I started my business with a small amount of capital, less than $50 USD, which isn’t even enough to buy chairs or plates for my restaurant. 

I received the $200 USD (equals SSP 33,000) in seed money from Save Society Foundation and Rockflower as my first loan. Now, I can scale my business by buying 10 chairs and a number of plates. I have already seen an increase in my sales and clientele. 

My future plans include continuing to increase my capital to have a sustainable basis for my business to grow. This will increase my income and improve my children’s futures by allowing them to go to school.”

Maimona Stephen - Sells African Clothing in Hai Jabel

“I am a single mother of 5 children. My husband abandoned us. I started a small business selling secondhand and new African clothing. It was hard to start my business and did not thrive at first because local banks do not give out small loans. 

I received a loan from the seed money Save Society Foundation gave out from Rockflower. In one month, I have increased my inventory and seen a growth in sales. This has already improved my family’s living standards economically and my children will have a better future.”

Florence Sadia - Hair Salon in Hai Jabel

“In South Sudan, it is not easy to get loans from banks, especially since I am a widow and do not have a bank grantee. I lost my husband during the war and am a single mother of three children. 

The seed money has allowed me to scale my business. During the past month, I have added more materials resulting in more options in my shop. I’ve already seen a difference, my daily sales have increased.”

Joice Kila - Sells Vegetables in St Kizito Market, Juba

“I have lost my husband and was left a single mother. Due to medical costs I couldn’t afford, 3 of my four children passed away. My child and I moved from Khartoum to Juba. But I had no hope left, we had no money, nowhere to live and no employment. I was desperate for help and one day, someone gave me the advice to start my own business. I began a mobile business selling vegetables, such as casava and sweet potatoes, in the markets of Juba, South Sudan. With the seed money from Save Society Foundation and Rockflower, I was able to buy a wheelbarrow. Now I don’t have to carry the buckets of vegetables I can push them. This has also allowed me to have more product at one time and increased my sales. The small rise in profits has already increased our living standards.”

Loyce Hawa - Sells Soft Drinks in Shuku Libya Market Place

“A few years ago, my husband abandoned my children and me, leaving me a single mother. Life was hard to bear. I had no means of support. I had to change my living situation, so I opened a small business selling soft drinks. However, this did not sustain our household as the rent was high for both my business and our house. 

With the capital injection into my business from Rockflower and Save Society Foundation, I am able to support my family and improve my business.”

First Activity of the End Child Marriage Now!!! Protect Her Rights Project with CHICOSUDO

Chitani Community Sustainable Development Organization (CHICOSUDO) received funds in September for the End Child Marriage Now!!! Protect Her Rights project. We received a report from Leslie Kapile, Programs Manager for CHICOSUDO, about the first activity conducted earlier this month.

CHICOSUDO organized a community awareness event where youth, particularly girls and boys from 12 to 17 years old, were engaged. The meeting focused on disseminating information on sexual reproductive health and rights, the importance of education, and dispersing school materials, including notebooks, pens, and soap. A total of 30 youths, 10 boys and 20 girls, benefitted from the first event.

Aginess speaking with excitement to the CHICOSUDO Programs Manager, Lesley Kapile, about the project.

Aginess, a girl in Primary Seven at Pasani Primary School, expressed her happiness at having access to sexual reproductive health information and what her rights are. To her, the awareness was an eye-opener as access to such information remains a challenge in the local area of Ntonya. She also appreciated receiving school materials. 

The awareness meeting was attended by the key leaders, including the Chambe Ward Councilor, Child Protection Worker, Group Village Headman of Ntonya, Head Teachers from the Pasani and Sukayakwe Primary Schools. The Ward Councilor was happy with the approach stating, “We cannot end child marriages if we do not meet the needs of the girl child and in the absence of boys.” The Group Village Headman of Ntonya promised to engage the eleven remaining traditional leaders to promote education for girls in their respective villages and reinforce community bylaws that protect the girl child from any form of gender-based violence. He said, “We will adopt the community court and continue to strengthen our links with child protection workers, the victim support unit, and the government through the District of Ntonya’s community-based organization.”

Child marriage is a prominent issue that has negative impacts that range throughout the lifetimes of the girl child. Bridget Mkomo, CHICOSUDO Project Officer, explained that the idea of engaging girls at risk with information and support before they return to school from the long-term COVID-19 closure would help them remember the importance of education and empower them. She then added, “the CHICOSUDO campaign will continue to strengthen the capacities of traditional leaders, teachers, parents and other key leaders in the community to ensure that community bylaws are enforced thereby protecting the sexual reproductive health rights for adolescents and girls in the area and beyond. At the same time, through the campaign, adolescent and girls will be empowered to speak out and report any case of abuse if happen. We expect to reach 11 villages.”

Prevention, Protection and Preparedness for COVID-19 for 200 Rural Girls and Women in Nepal

Sunday, the 11th of October is International Day of the Girl and Rockflower is pleased to announce a new partnership with Janaki Women Awareness Society (JWAS) in Nepal. 

JWAS, a community-based organization established in 1993 by a group of women social workers, is undertaking a project to educate and protect the most marginalized of women and girls through a virtual and listening program on the threat of COVID-19. 

By utilizing the power of radio, picture books, and small community listening groups, JWAS is creating effective channels of communication to inspire and protect those most at risk. Information about COVID-19 prevention, preparedness and protection, and how best to access health services during this pandemic are of paramount importance in these communities. Read more about these girls and young women who are at high risk for child marriage and gender-based violence and how through this simple but effective means of communication JWAS will be stemming the tide of an inevitable surge in COVID-19 cases. 

COVID-19 Protection Kits Distributed to Rohingya Refugees and IDPs through Women’s Peace Network

Rockflower’s funding of the Women’s Peace Network’s project to provide COVID-19 Relief for Rohingya Refugees and IDPs has begun in earnest.

In late August, 1,000 kits for COVID-19 protection were distributed to elderly women, widows and orphaned girls in refugee camps in Bangladesh. Each kit included: 2 reusable face masks, 2 bottles of hand sanitizer, 1 large towel, a scarf, 1 kg of flour, and 2 kg of sticky rice.

The kits were well received as the items differ from what other NGOs are supplying the refugees with.

“This is the first time that I am going to eat sticky rice* since I fled from Myanmar three years ago. I have never received a donation like this before.”

— WPN Beneficiary

*Sticky rice is one of the most popular breakfast foods among Rohingya.

Another beneficiary said she was happy to receive the flour and protection kit so that she could make traditional foods during the holy days. One beneficiary who is only 17, was very grateful for this support as she was running from the prospect of a forced marriage and as yet had not received help from any other source. There is a great deal of work to be done to ensure that those living in such dire conditions are given as continued support.

Rockflower Partners with the Save Society Foundation

Rockflower is pleased to announce a new partnership with the Save Society Foundation.

The Save Society Foundation works at the community level in South Sudan to build the capacity of the marginalized communities, including internally displaced persons (IDPs), refugees, women, youth, and peoples with disabilities, to enable them to have a better standard of living through economic transformation, improved health, quality education and promotion of peace, conflict mitigation and democracy.

Due to wars and illnesses, such as HIV and AIDS, Sudanese women have lost their husbands. The Improve Standard of Living for Homeless Sudanese Women project will help them to start earning an income and improve their housing conditions with their savings to pay land title deeds, land surveys for permanent ownership, pay school tuition fees for their children, and/or healthcare.

Graphic Design Course with the AVAZ Association

Rockflower’s ongoing commitment to the AVAZ Association to Establish a Women’s Technology Education Center has begun a Graphic Design course. Instruction will begin during the first week of August. The Public Health Directorate has granted permission to the AVAZ Association for in-person instruction.

The subject will be taught to two groups of 12 female refugees, 24 in total, over the course of 6 months. Over 50 applications were received. The intention is to provide the refugee women with economic empowerment opportunities in areas other than the typically gendered options, such as sewing, embroidery and hairdressing. The study plan for the course can be viewed below.

COVID-19 Relief Project in Northern Pakistan and AJK

Rockflower is continuing its long-standing partnership with Community Services Program (CSP) by extending the initial relief from our Emergency Fund into a six month administered project specifically targeting at-risk women’s groups and female-headed households.

The COVID-19 Relief Project in Northern Pakistan and AJK will provide training and education on how to protect and encourage behavior change to limit the rate of infection and transmission rates. Continued distribution of food items and WASH kits will be an integral part of the project.

Given how much the consequences of the pandemic have been exacerbated by the socio-political situation in Northern Pakistan and the Azad Jammu and Kashmir region, this additional assistance is extremely timely and necessary.

To donate, please visit our Give to the Garden page.

Rain for the Sahel and Sahara

Niger

Niger declared a national state of emergency due to the COVID-19 pandemic on March 27.  The measure was extended for another three months starting July 12.

Challenges and Concerns

The following is excerpted from a summary report by Katherine Kolios, Executive Director of Rain for the Sahel and Sahara.

This has been an especially challenging period in Niger. The country had its first case of coronavirus in late March and the government reacted swiftly - they shut the borders, limited transit within the country, closed schools from Kindergarten through University, and asked people to remain home if possible. The government's reaction was necessary - Niger simply doesn't have the medical infrastructure to deal with a widespread outbreak. Unfortunately, as we've seen in many other countries, the impact of the virus goes well beyond the virus itself. Closing borders and limiting transportation made it harder to access basic necessities. As stockpiles dwindled, prices soared. RAIN's partner communities - poor, remote villages - are some of the hardest hit. 

In April, David Beasley, the head of the World Food Program, announced that we could expect to see famines of "biblical proportions" across the globe. This is what our partner communities feared - not coronavirus, but starvation. In this way, COVID reiterated the importance of communities being able to meet their basic needs locally. Rural and nomadic communities without access to safe water are at significant risk if the coronavirus or another disease infiltrates the population. They are also most vulnerable to price fluctuations as they have limited access to markets and goods. Now, more than ever, our partner communities need support – and Rockflower stepped in to help. 

Adaptation Measures

RAIN’s Field Team, led by Director of Programs Boube Aw, was committed to standing by our partners, especially during these challenging times. The team applied for special dispensation to travel and pivoted from running education and livelihood programs to delivering emergency aid and training. 

In recent weeks, RAIN’s staff:

• Distributed over 40 cartons of soap – over 1,000 extra-large bars of soap. Soap was given to 101 women mentors in the Agadez region of Niger in the villages of Aouderas, Batarmatas, Tinteloust, Etaghas, Eferouane Nord and Soulefet. In turn, these women coordinated distribution to students and families across all 6 villages.

• Established 5 washing stations to serve local middle school students and to decrease their risk of virus transmission as they return to school.

• Delivered awareness building & training seminars on the transmission of COVID-19 - encouraging people to follow the five steps outlined by Niger’s Department of Health (wear a mask, cough or sneeze into your elbow, avoid shaking hands, wash your hands with soap, & remain at home or, if out, retain at least one meter of distance from others).

Emergency Fund

In June, Hassana Alidou, the Former Ambassador from Niger to the United States and Canada spoke about how, in these rural communities, ceasing programs to limit the spread of coronavirus posed a greater risk than the virus itself. With Rockflower’s support, we were able to help supply the resources for our partner communities to continue programming but also to do so safely.

“We believe in the power of these entrepreneurial women, these curious children, and these committed families to build their own futures – but we also know how hard that is to do without support. They are grateful and we are grateful to Rockflower for pitching in to ensure that these basic vital needs are met so that education and opportunity do not need to be put on hold for COVID.”

— Katherine Kolios, Executive Director of RAIN

Rockflower Welcomes Caroline Bracken to the Catalyzer Collective

Rockflower is pleased to announce the addition of Caroline Bracken to our Catalyzer Collective.

Caroline is a recent graduate of the College of Charleston where she studied Political Science with a minor in International Studies and Geography. While at Charleston, Caroline studied Modern Standard Arabic and dedicated her senior year to write a thesis about the different peace and security outcomes of the Arab Spring of 2010. She is passionate about the social, cultural, and political dynamics of the Middle East and North Africa and is interested in pursuing a career in research and policy related to the region. Caroline firmly believes that peace and security isn’t possible without the empowerment of women and girls.

We are excited to welcome her to our Catalyzer Collective!

Rockflower Welcomes Kaidlyne Neukam to the Catalyzer Collective

Rockflower is pleased to announce the addition of Kaidlyne Neukam to our Catalyzer Collective.

Kaidlyne is a recent graduate of American University and has been specializing in gendered use cases of energy-efficient appliances in off-grid communities during her most recent role with CLASP, a DC-based NGO. With her varied background in international development, business and communications, Kaidlyne is passionate about business-driven efforts to empower women and girls through catalytic funding and partnerships.

We are excited to welcome her to our Catalyzer Collective!

Casa Congo

Nicaragua

As one of the last countries to confirm COVID-19 cases Nicaragua is being carefully monitored by the Pan American Health Organization to ensure accurate statistics are being shared. There have been no strict lockdown measures enforced and as a result information about the spread of the virus is not uniform. The need to keep abreast of the government’s reporting will be of ongoing importance in the maintenance of balance for community health.

Concerns and Challenges

Casa Congo is very concerned about the spread of COVID-19 given the state of the Nicaraguan health infrastructure. Those with limited resources and access to healthcare will continue to be at most risk.

Adaptation Measures

As the pandemic began to take hold in late February, Casa Congo’s international team members quarantined in their respective home locations of Dubai, France, the Netherlands, Vancouver and Rome. The team on the ground in Nicaragua made the decision to close school operations to safeguard the local community. Casa Congo itself has been closed to volunteers, tourists and children which continues to challenge a well prepared budget, but the community’s safety is the first priority.

Although the pandemic has significantly altered plans, Casa Congo continues to move forward with great fervor. They have adapted to include numerous initiatives and activities, amongst those, a partnership with Buy Food with Plastic (a local waste program), increased gardening activities, a meeting with the Nicaraguan Minister of the Environment and surf lessons for local children.

Emergency Fund

In the coming weeks, Casa Congo will begin to budget and implement a seed program utilizing our Emergency Fund contribution. With the completion of their application for a grant to deliver water filtration systems, they are now looking ahead to what else can be prepared in advanced for long term food security.

Footsteps Africa

Malawi

Malawi was one of the last countries to announce a case of COVID-19. President Peter Mutharika has banned foreign nationals from some countries from entering Malawi and has told Malawians to social distance. However, the country remains open. In mid April, a lockdown was blocked by the High Court due to a challenge by the Human Rights Defenders Coalition (HRDC). It was said that more had to be done to help those that would be worst affected. The President is now starting an emergency cash transfer program. Additionally, Malawi’s Supreme Court upheld a ruling from last year that the general election has irregularities and a new election must occur no later than July 3.

Concerns, Challenges and Adaptation Measures

Footsteps Africa has received concerns from the locals that live in the villages they work in about them possibly bringing the coronavirus with them when they come to work on community projects. The rural communities have not yet seen health impacts due to the coronavirus, but have felt the economic strain.

Emergency Fund

Footsteps Africa has utilized the Emergency Fund donation from Rockflower to distribute corn grain to vulnerable, elderly women in their project areas. These women rely upon remittances sent by relatives. Due to the consequences of COVID-19, including loss of daily income, their relatives are no longer able to send them financial support.

Rockflower Partners with Center for Civil Society and Democracy

Rockflower is pleased to announce a new partnership with the Center for Civil Society and Democracy.

The Center for Civil Society and Democracy (CCSD) works to support a tolerant and inclusive democracy for Syria where there is respect for diversity, justice, equality, and freedom for all Syrians.

Many Syrian women face roadblocks to participate in society in a meaningful and impactful way and with the impact of COVID-19, having limited or no access to technology exacerbates the isolation and further impacts women’s labor force participation negatively. Digital literacy has been proven as a factor that improves women’s access to employment opportunities where providing useful and applied skills can build confidence and create more opportunities for women. CCSD is launching the Supporting Syrian Women to Have Access to Technology project as an initiative and plans to expand this effort in order to create a platform for a concerted effort towards closing gender gaps in digital literacy as the world moves faster and faster towards online communication.

Rockflower Partners with Women's Peace Network

Rockflower is pleased to announce a new partnership with Women’s Peace Network.

Women's Peace Network is taking a multi-sectoral approach to engage with vulnerable communities affected by ongoing conflicts in Myanmar, specifically, the Rohingya internally displaced in Myanmar, and the refugees in Bangladesh.

Already facing incredible challenges in the camps, Rohingya refugees and IDPs are now facing the life-threatening COVID-19 pandemic and remain incredibly vulnerable. Communicable diseases and viruses flourish in overcrowded, unsanitary environments like refugee camps. With WPN’s provision of masks and hand sanitizer through the COVID-19 Relief for Rohingya Refugees and IDPs project, they aim to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in these densely populated refugee and IDP camps.

Foundation for Research and Sustainable Development

India

India reported 8,909 new coronavirus cases, its biggest single-day rise as the total number of infections rose above 200,000.

This map from the New York Times shows India’s coronavirus case count by region. Our partner, Foundation for Research and Sustainable Development (FRSD), is located in Tamil Nadu.

Concerns and Challenges

FRSD’s major concern is the spread of COVID-19 through migrant workers as the country begins to reduce its lockdown restrictions. The risk of spreading COVID-19 in rural areas of Tamil Nadu are high and will flood the healthcare system there. In response, communities have been treating migrant workers poorly due to their fear of the coronavirus.

Emergency Fund

Rockflower’s Emergency Fund has supported FRSD in education initiatives on the preventative measures they can take in regard to COVID-19 and the distribution of food provisions and masks to the public. The women’s group FRSD works with has been making face masks to help with the demand as they have been mandatory at many public gatherings.

SIRP Marks Menstrual Hygiene Management Day with Best Practices and Reusable Sanitary Pads

The Society for the Improvement of Rural People in Enugu State, Nigeria, addresses all aspects of what it will take for women and girls to thrive in their communities. They continue to conduct workshops and seminars, whilst maintaining appropriate guidelines to ensure the health and safety of the community. SIRP's success in tackling the root causes of female genital mutilation (FGM) by working with traditional leaders and educators proved to be a great foundation as they confront the ongoing crisis on COVID-19. 

With continued support from Rockflower, SIRP marked Menstrual Hygiene Management Day with a gathering designed to share best menstrual health practices and ways to make reusable sanitary pads. The information and assistance were both timely and well-received. 

A direct consequence of the lockdown is the potential for increased gender-based violence, a resurgence in FGM, and greater use of drugs. Below are the thoughts Dr. Chris Ugwu, Executive Director of SIRP, shared with us.

“For rural communities in Enugu State, the immediate impact of the pandemic is not a direct health impact, but rather indirect. The virus originated primarily in our urban centers of Lagos, Abuja, Enugu, etc, and government responses have focused on containing the virus and "flattening the curve", as much as possible.

If the virus spreads at the same rate as it is doing currently in the urban centers; weaker health systems in our rural communities would cause the direct impacts of the virus to be felt more acutely, compounding the economic impacts. In the long term, whether the virus spreads to rural areas or not, it is very likely that food systems will be disrupted and economic challenges will continue, particularly impacting vulnerable rural households, especially women and children.

The group most vulnerable as COVID-19 rises in an astronomical rate (by today Nigeria has recorded 1728 infected cases, 307 discharged, and 51 death cases) are women. The disproportionate burden on women and girls as caregivers, household managers, and participants in the informal and insecure economy is brought into stark relief by this pandemic.

Because, rural communities in Enugu State have not been affected adversely by COVID-19, as they are usually seen as a secondary priority by the government. Meanwhile, the rural communities are already feeling the impacts of government shutdowns and social distancing measures- delaying support for them risks pushing them faster towards extreme poverty. Women in the rural communities of Enugu State are already at risk because of entrenched gender inequalities, in which women and men have differential access to help them cope with and recover from this kind of pandemic.

It's our thinking that as a strategy the Social Safety Net programs must be prioritized.

Action and Tools Needed: Access to relief funds and food palliatives distributed through credible community NGOs as partners. While social distancing and movement restrictions are crucial to slow the spread of COVID-19, agricultural channels must remain open. Cutting off these access points for vulnerable subsisting women rural farmers, for instance, removes both their opportunities to earn their additional income through employment and buy the right inputs for their farms, and risk their food security when they need to buy food to supplement their own crops.

Action and Strategy Being Recommended: The Chinese model "green lanes" in which rural farmers have relaxed lockdown guidelines that allow farmers to go to their farms on identified days." 

Continuing Reproductive Health through the COVID-19 Pandemic

African Youth Alliance, based in Cameroon, is led by Roseline and her team were just beginning their work on the Five Keys in Five Villages project at the start of this year before they had to pivot and regroup to address the needs imposed by the spread of COVID-19. This 2-year project was designed exclusively by AYA and the villages, to prove and track how each of the five keys overlaps and impacts each other. Through regular meetings to share findings and resources, they plan to offer a comprehensive review of why funding locally-led initiatives is the key to progress. The following is an edited excerpt from an interim report. 

"The village of Tumuku was assigned the key of Maternal and Reproductive Health. With the support of a community volunteer, the nurse had detailed discussion sessions with the groups in Tumuku village on the following topics to make sure that the members understood these topics: reproductive health, family planning, and general hygiene. With respect to reproductive health, she defined both terms, reproduction and health, for the group to understand them separately before highlighting the difference between the reproductive health of a female and a male. The group was able to freely talk about issues relating to females, such as breast and hip development and menstruation, and how they noticed a change in their muscles, deep voice, development of axillary and facial hairs for males. The women and girls were urged to practice safe sex with the right person as well as carry out regular medical checks in order to ensure they were in good health. Family planning was also defined during the brainstorming session, and a detailed explanation was given on the different methods of birth control including the natural method, a condom, pills, withdrawal method, and tubal ligation. Breastfeeding was discussed. The practices of good personal hygiene and to have a balanced diet for healthy living were encouraged. To round up the group lectures, the nurse educated the women and girls in attendance on basic and necessary hygienic measures, such as hand washing before and after meals or a visit to the toilet, washing of the head/face, taking a bath at least once or twice daily and when you do hard labor to avoid the use of bleaching agent on your body as it will remove melanin. It is worth noting that these activities were very educational and important because it built a foundation of knowledge for the women and girls to care for themselves in order to continue to stay healthy during this latest crisis of COVID-19."