Project presentation
In Benin, populations living in rural areas are considered the poorest. In the villages of Zounzonmé and Adingnignon, 60% of residents live on less than €1 per day, and 45% are illiterate. The health crisis worsened the precariousness of the population and increased school dropouts among young girls. A survey in these two villages identified a 50% increase in school dropouts among girls enrolled in the Collèges d’Enseignement Général (CEG), where they are supposed to be studying from ages 12 to 22. Lack of information on sexual and reproductive health (SRH), unintended pregnancies, limited access to water for menstrual hygiene, early marriages, and household chores are all factors that hinder these young girls’ education.
To combat this phenomenon, the association Sages-Femmes Sans Frontières (SFSF) works in these two villages alongside the local association Solidarité et Initiatives pour un Développement Durable (SID) to educate schoolgirls on SRH, thereby promoting school attendance, and to support the social reintegration of young mothers. A prevention bus raises awareness among students in 2 CEGs, while SFSF’s MIMA training center supports income-generating activities (IGAs) for young mothers or for girls who have fallen too far behind to return to school.
