Spring 2023 News
The young mothers at their graduation ceremony
Graduation success!
In January, we proudly celebrated the achievements of 13 young mothers who completed two years of vocational training with the project. A special graduation event was held to mark the occasion, attended by friends and family. The young women received certificates and personalised ‘start-up kits’ consisting of tools, materials and equipment needed to continue their vocational work.
Of the 13 young mothers, six have secured employment so far, whilst the others are being supported by our team to find employment or set-up their own businesses.
Adama with her new sewing machine and materials
Adama’s story
Adama, pictured above, was one of two young women who inspired the set-up of the Adami Project in 2018. She has successfully completed her tailoring course with the AdAmi Project. Adama originally opted to return to formal education, but after a few years back at school decided to pursue tailoring instead.
Despite many challenges along the way, including the sad loss of her son in early 2019, Adama has flourished with the support of the project and today is an accomplished young tailor earning an income of her own. On exiting the project, Adama was awarded a sewing machine and materials to help her develop her skills and business.
International Women’s Day celebrations in a local village of Bo district
Marking International Women’s Day
On 8th March, the young mothers took the lead in marking and celebrating International Women’s Day in their communities.
As well as participating in a local march and other awareness raising activities, the young mothers organised a friendly football match - a sport they are all passionate about! The entire community joined to watch the game, where the young mothers had the chance to demonstrate their football and team work skills! It proved a brilliant way to spread the word about International Women's Day, and the project, in a fun and engaging way.
Some of the new young mothers at the AdAmi office in Bo
Welcoming the next cohort of young mothers
We welcomed a new cohort of 25 young mothers in January, as part of our planned scale-up for 2023.
The young mothers have been participating in weekly life skills sessions, exploring a range of topics. These meetings are used as a means of building trust, whilst enabling the team to get to know each of the young mothers and their hopes and aspirations for the project. In September, each of the young mothers will be formally enrolled back into school or vocational training, depending on their chosen education pathways.
We have held two ‘family meals’ which bring all of the young mothers together with their family members to hear updates from the project whilst sharing a hot meal together. It is also an opportunity for the families to get to know each other and to build a support network with others in a similar situation.
Meeting community members to discuss business activities
Grant distribution to parents
Parents, caregivers and other family members play a critical role in the AdAmi Project, and their active buy-in and support is key if the young mothers are to be successful. This includes providing free childcare whilst the young women are at school or in training, or helping he young mothers with some domestic and work chores so they can focus fully on their studies.
We recognise that many of the families live in extreme poverty and struggle to make ends meet, making it hard for them to give up their time for free. This is why we offer business training and grants to family members, so that they can set up or grow small businesses to generate further income into the household.
We have been distributing these grants for over a year now with good success. In one case, a family was able to generate enough profit to purchase land for a new home and most caregivers report that they are able to generate further income through the grants.
Young mothers participating in a peer mentoring training
Updates from the Community Girls Network
The young mothers are continuing to develop new activities through their Community Girls Network.
For example, they have been busy initiating their own group income generation activities - this includes making a popular local soap, bead work and agriculture. With micro-grants given by the project, the young women have received training and practical support to kick start the initiatives.
Through this work, the young mothers hope to diversify their livelihoods and grow additional, nutritious food for their families.
Thank you!
On behalf of everyone at the AdAmi Project, a huge thank you for your continued support towards this work.