Developing Girls Agency to Speak Out! Inspiring Champions of Child Rights with SAWA Wanawake Tanzania

Girls' confidence and courage to speak out for their rights and protection are crucial to their education and success. In both rural and urban communities in Africa, a significant obstacle to girls' education and agency, as identified by our partners, is teenage pregnancies that often lead to school dropouts. Our partner, SAWA Wanawake Tanzania, tells us that most cases of teenage pregnancy and school dropout in their community stem from child abuse, including instances involving close relatives.

Founded in 1996 and registered in 1998, SAWA Wanawake Tanzania is a community-driven organization currently based in Morogoro Tanzania. Since its inception, SAWA Wanawake has been committed to creating a society where women, girls, and children in Tanzania can realize their basic human rights and fulfill their needs.

To realize their vision SAWA Wanawake runs various programs in their community that focus on childhood development, basic education, and child protection. Leonora Ngowi (Norah), who works with SAWA Wanawake as the M&E Officer speaks passionately about their child protection project which she says has been key in fighting against girls and child abuse in the community and in protecting girls' right to education.

One innovative approach SAWA Wanawake employs in its child protection project is the child-friendly accountability approach. This approach provides children and girls with a platform to engage in informed dialogues with decision-makers regarding issues that concern them. Through this program, they can identify problems in the community and work together to find solutions.

SAWA Wanawake targets secondary schools, selecting Form 1 and 3 student representatives who receive training on child rights and protection over the course of a year. SAWA ensures that both boys and girls participate in the program to foster an environment where boys can protect girls from any form of abuse.

After completing the program, student representatives become champions of child rights and protection in their schools and communities. These champions, every week, train their peers in nearby churches, mosques, and schools about their rights, self-protection, and referral procedures, especially for those in remote areas.

SAWA Wanawake Representative speaking to boys and girls at a primary school in Morogoro, Tanzania

Norah notes that child abuse cases also sadly start at a young age. Recognizing this, SAWA Wanawake now also targets primary school children through their program to ensure that all children, especially girls, know their rights and can report cases of abuse from a young age. In 2022, SAWA Wanawake reached over 500 girls and boys, both in and out of school, through the child-friendly accountability approach program.

In addition to training children and girls about their rights, Sawa Wanawake Tanzania also established girls’ hostels in 3 community secondary schools (government secondary schools under ward level) to support girls who come from remote areas and those who would otherwise walk long distances to their schools and are at risk of abuse. These girls are given accommodation in the hostels. These hostels also offer refuge to girls rescued by SAWA Wanawake from abuse, providing them with counseling and training to become advocates for child rights and protection.

‘One of the challenges we face is lack of community support especially in reporting these cases. You will find that the victims protect their families… They are afraid to be cast out by their families.’  Norah says.

Dealing with child protection is a sensitive issue, especially when family members are involved in concealing and protecting abusers. Norah also highlights that community members frequently attempt to handle cases privately, outside of the formal legal system.

Community-driven organizations such as SAWA Wanawake need more support from the community and local governments in addressing child abuse cases. Norah shares the story of a girl named Tumaini (a pseudonym) who found the courage to speak out and report her abuse to the school head teacher after participating in SAWA's child-friendly accountability program. Tumaini, who was in Form 2 at the time, had gone through abuse from a close relative since primary grade 6. SAWA Wanawake later discovered that Tumaini's family, including her mother and siblings, were aware of the abuse but were afraid to report it due to the trauma of witnessing Tumaini's suffering. The school head reported the case to local authorities, leading to the arrest and sentencing of the perpetrator to 30 years in prison.

SAWA Wanawake provided Tumaini with a safe haven in one of their hostels and supported her in continuing her education. Tumaini is currently in form 4 and about to sit for her final exams. Tumaini also joined the school’s sports club where she is the captain and supervises her peers in the hostel. In her free time, she talks to fellow girls about their rights and the importance of pursuing their education to fulfill their dreams.

To ensure that more girls like Tumaini develop the agency to speak out, receive protection, and pursue their education, Norah emphasizes that SAWA Wanawake requires additional support for capacity strengthening to conduct impactful life skills programs and train more girls through their child-friendly accountability approach program.

AMPLIFY Girls believes in community-driven organizations (CDOs) and the unique interventions that they carry out in their communities that are tailored to the needs and issues they identify in the community. One of our strategies in supporting CDOs is through training for capacity strengthening and distribution of funds to our partners. This enables them to run their programs and ensure girls in their communities gain access to agency-building programs and opportunities and can pursue their education.

We can only do this through your support. Donate today and join us in supporting Community-driven Organizations like SAWA Wanawake Tanzania, to give voice and hope to more girls in their communities.