Strategic Goal Two

To end child marriages and teenage pregnancies among adolescent girls through the amplification of voices of girls at risk of child marriages and defend girl’s rights to health, education and create opportunities to their fully potential.

Globally, approximately 52% of the female population (26% of the total population) is of reproductive age. Most of these women and girls will menstruate each month for between 2 – 7 days.  And Around 23% of adolescent girls in the age-group of 12-18 drop out of school when they begin menstruation. In Uganda many women and girls are poor and assumed to be unable to (sufficiently) access or afford sanitary materials including sanitary towel. According to a study done by UNICEF in 2013, 1 in 10 school girls in Africa miss school or drop out completely due to lack of access to menstrual materials and other sanitary products.

This critical unavailability of sanitary products is a major barrier to education for girls of school-going age. The inability to effectively manage menstruation contributes to absences of up to 4-5 school days each month, equating to as much as 20% of the academic year intentionally skipped, simply due to menstruation. Eventually many of these girls drop out of school entirely, increasing their risk to the likelihood of early initiation to sex with associated risks of HIV, early pregnancy and teenage pregnancy with its associated maternal health complications, and further limiting their future career and economic opportunities. The law to promote gender equality, we will do this by challenging laws that discriminate against or increase the vulnerability of women and girls and promoting laws that would protect their wellbeing. Through such legal and systemic change, we hope to realize a world in which women and girls live as equal citizens, free from violence, discrimination, and exploitation.