Rafiki Program launch in Sindo

Happy to announce that the 23 Rafiki’s have been trained in Sindo, a small village that is situated along the beautiful and distant shores of Lake Victoria in Homa Bay County in Kenya. For two days young men and women from the area were trained following a workshop that has been implemented with partners in Kenya as well as South Sudan, Ivory Coast, Tanzania, and Gambia during the past three years. But this was the very first time the trainees walked out with a new title – Rafiki - and an added feeling of responsibility for their younger sisters and brothers in their neighbourhood.

The Rafiki concept introduces peer educators – so called Rafiki′s - to adolescents from the ages of 10 – 18 in the community and at schools. The Rafiki Support & Prevention Program 4 Adolescents has a holistic approach and targets both girls and boys with comprehensive sexuality education and human rights information and all-around long-term support which includes connecting those in need to youth friendly health services.

I was super excited to learn that our host and partner organisation – County Youth and Adolescents Network (CYAN) are implementing a similar program. The founders Steve Juma and Joseph Were - who both are below 30 themselves - have come to the same conclusion and solution by analysing the dire situation for adolescents. Using peers in humanitarian programs is not something new – it is being implemented successfully by many organisations – but most programs are short-term. The Rafiki methodology is different by being long-term, holistic and by using a bottom-up strategy.

One of the first questions in the workshop wer posed by Steve the founder of CYAN. Who is responsible for 10-year-old children falling pregnant? For girls of 13 or 14 years old having sex for sanitary pads? For the high rate of new HIV infections among young people? The situation is a silent and growing emergency but is not a new phenomenon, nor is it not only happening in Homabay and Kenya. Teenage pregnancy is a common problem in many developing countries with unsafe abortions, school dropout, complications at birth and mortality as results among many others.

The other day I read an article in one of Kenya’s newspapers talking about the high number of girls below 18 falling pregnant in another county in Kenya called Narok. The article stated that most probably there are many more cases that have not been reported and ended with asking parents to step up and spend quality time with their children. But will this solve the situation? Why are children giving birth to children? It is easy to start a blame game. Parents should become more responsible. Teachers should be taught how to teach life skills and sex education better. Health clinics personnel should refrain from having a judgemental attitude and provide youth friendly health services. But will it work or rather is it working?

Because this not a new situation or new ideas or activities and strategies. And as someone wise once said; only a fool will repeat the same action and expect different results. Youths need adult support and education to navigate through their teens but the adults who according to the law and society are responsible are failing. The only way to solve a problem it is to analyse what lies behind it and everyone who attended the workshop in Sindo agreed; parents, teachers and the government are failing and one of the leading causes is the taboo and stigma that is connected to sex.

There are parents – and not a few – who will kick out their young daughters on the street when they fall pregnant – even if raped - due to the shame they experience. And this is not only happening in Kenya. And not many years has passed since the feeling of shame in regards to teenage pregnancy was present in Europe and the US. The current situation is an ongoing crisis and there is a need to think, but most of all act differently. We believe that Rafiki’s – peers – young adults aged 18 – 30 years old – who come from similar background – is the solution. By introducing Rafiki’s in the school and communities alongside the already existing community health workers (CHW′s) or nurses present in schools can make a big difference.

Rafiki’s that are trained in peer counselling and how to teach comprehensive sexuality education and human rights. Rafiki’s who are connected to health clinics and health departments rather than schools and who take over the responsibility to teach the current life skills curriculum to children in Primary and Secondary schools. Grown-up all-around supporters who can also be there as friends that can help and listen when a child is bullied or anything else that they wonder or need help with. Someone who can keep a secret.

Community health workers are present in most parts of Kenya and are doing great work, but they are not able to reach children which is why the situation is so severe for adolescents specifically who are surrounded by health and abuse risks. By belonging to the same age bracket, Rafiki’s can overcome the generation gap that creates the feeling of shame and stigma. When something is taboo it is hidden in the society, like a secret. And among these silent topics are sex in relation to children and youths leaving them sometimes without any information about reproductive health.

During the workshops in different countries, I have again and again encountered women who had no clue what menstruation was when they entered their menarche (had their period the first time). Just imagine how you would feel as a young girl if you started bleeding. Blood is connected to being hurt and many of the women confessed they thought they were dying. Or adult men who seriously believe that menstruation is dirty. Or – like in this workshop as well as in most I have given – grownups that regularly practice counting safe days as a contraceptive – who have no clue that there is no such thing as a 100 % safe day – that a girl and a women can fall pregnant any day of their cycle.

Being an adolescent is a confusing passage and many youths change personality and become shy when puberty hits which further complicates the situation. Being shy and feeling uncomfortable to talk about sex is not applicable only to the children, but also to adults, which explains the current situation and the taboo. Teachers and parents haven’t been and are still not able to carry the responsibility of providing basic support and information regarding reproduction and this will not change fast or in close future and it is a problem in most poor and rich countries as well.

There is a need to act and think differently and this is where our new Rafiki methodology comes into play. We believe that young adult educators – 18 – 28 years old – should be hired to teach the life skills education in schools and be present in the community. This way the generation gap will be overcome by introducing children to someone that is almost their same age and therefore has the same perspective and most of all - someone they look up to and feel they can trust.

During the workshop the trainees were also trained in how to implement menstrual cup projects. Together we will reach out in the community to 1000 girls with menstrual cups who have been donated from the H&M brand Monki and the Finish menstrual cup company Lunette. This is the first of a series of Rafiki workshops that will take place in in different parts of Kenya with different partner organizations starting this new year of 2022.

Like mini activists, Steve, Joseph, our 23 new trained Rafiki’s and the next ones to come - and in the background - a Professor at a Japanese University called Mike who is developing research for the program, Fahruq - my partner and the co-founder of Rafiki who developed the implementation plan and documenting the development who is a filmmaker and photographer and Athene in Spain that is supporting with social media and more and my daughter Aya′s feedback and other youths - thank you - we are hoping to create awareness of the situation for adolescents and the Rafiki program which we believe can be a turning point. Please follow us on Instagram Rafiki2022 or our Fb page Rafiki Support & Prevention Program 4 Adolescents.

Thank you everyone that has supported through Support a girl - One a Day campaign!