Girls In Red Organization was created 12 years ago in Uganda with the mission to equip young women and girls with relevant knowledge and practical skills that will enable them to transform their lives, so that they will become productive citizens and visionary leaders capable of shaping a sustainable society.
The social causes addressed by the organisation are women and girls empowerment, eradicating gender-based violence (GBV), improving education for girls and women and eradicating inequalities amongst girls and women.
Girls In Red aims to empower women and girls through providing them with skills such as tailoring, baking, liquid soap making, in order to help them generate incomes from the sales. They also provide financial literacy training and mental and physical education.
The organisation also aims to eradicate GBV through raising awareness in schools and communities, offering counselling, guidance and reconciliation of the victims and advocating for justice and fair judicial punishment for the culprits.
Another one of Girls In Red’s goals is to improve education for girls and women, through the back-to-school campaigns, which include giving out school material; through sexual and reproductive health rights (SRHR) teaching in school and communities so as to reduce school dropout rates, and having community dialogues with parents and guardians encouraging them to educate the girl child.
Finally, Girls In Red wants to eradicate inequalities amongst girls and women through collecting information about the dangers of gender inquealities in schools and communities and through human rights education and advocacy.
As a result of their efforts, they have managed to support multiple teenage pregnant girls in equipping them with practical skills and reconciling them with their parents. They have helped 200 girls return to school with material and sanitary towels and supported 100 boys and girls by supplying them with clothes.
Our Partnership
Girls In Red decided to partner with Aflatoun International because of its mission, vision and focus areas that are in line with the Ugandan organisation.
Currently, Girls in Red is implementing the Aflateen+ and AflaYouth curricula. What most appeals to them about Aflatoun is that the participants know who they are and who they want to become, as well as the teachings about planning for the future and saving money.
They believe that Social and Financial Education (SFE) has positively impacted our community, especially the young generation. In this case, it has transformed the lives of many girls that have learnt how to start up small businesses and save money knowing how to effectively spend it this has had great impact socially and economically in their lives.
“It has boosted a good moral conduct of the children” parents say.
Over 90% of the parents have had a positive feedback on how the Aflatoun programme has changed their children. “It has boosted a good moral conduct of the children, they came to realize their importance in the society and this has helped them to build self-esteem and confidence” says one of the parents, Mulereimaana Sentia.
The section of “my money, my plan and my enterprise” helped many of the children to develop a business mind and a saving culture. “I thank this organization (GIRO) after their teachings my daughter come back and embarked on piggery. Through continual savings she was able to buy a pig with a piglet, and I thank GIRO for their continual follow up on our children and for the counseling and guidance they give to them to help them became better and responsible children and citizens” says Nabbale Hasfah, another parent. Nabbale’s daughter is now looking forward to get school fees out of her piggery project she has started.
