Taking back my PEN!

Taking back my PEN! is an advocacy campaign to advance the right to go back to school for girls who have been forced to drop out of school especially during the extended time of school closures during the COVID-19 pandemic due to a number of factors such as child labour, early and unwanted pregnancies, negligence to mention but a few. The campaign is amplifying the voices of the adolescent mothers and related actors. Using girl-led advocacy approaches such as Taking back my pen! is hence raising awareness and engaging 50 girls on advancing their right to school as well as address the gender biases bringing related effects such as sexual and gender based violence, child labour and among others. Girls will engage key stakeholders and their voices will be amplified through community dialogues and forums for theatre, submitting a position paper on the gendered discrimination adapted into the education policy to lobby for the re-admission of pregnant girls back into school as well as developing and disseminating related content in form of a short film, blogs, pictures and key messages on social media to engage more audiences. This initiative is timely because the effects of COVID-19 closures of school will not only end with this current teenage mothers but also the young generation. Therefore this initiative seeks to empower girls to become more aware of and advance their right to go back to school. With the utilization of the right to go back to school, girls will have increased opportunities to information, civic participation, power to make decisions over their bodies and life, developing their potential and economic development. We seek to see improved strategies that advance girls rights at national and local government level evidenced by girls led social movement succeeding in creating space for girls’ rights demand, increased public support to promote girls’ right to go back to school as evidenced by Local leaders that have turned advocates of girl child education and empowerment, changed gender biased cultural mindset and men and boys who have become champions for the cause and a movement of girls/youth groups, associations and networks that regularly convene and amplify the human rights of girls formed. Embedded in the change among the girls will be the feminist values of self-awareness, inclusion, dismantling gender biases, sharing power, courage, and zero tolerance. Ultimately, increasing the number of teenage mothers being enrolled back in school both formally and vocation is our goal. In Wakiso district where our project is set, we will be engaged at least 10 schools to see how they are creating a conducive learning environment of the teenage mothers. We also measure the results by collaborating with the local government ministry of education and sports to ascertain enrollment and retentions of these young mothers.

Watch the campaign here on this short film.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHZIW4dTm8o