Girls Support Groups
Our Girls Support Groups provide safe spaces, tailored counselling and guidance, peer support and community outreach and education for teenage girls.
The Project
Our Girl Group Sessions focus on discussing issues such as early and forced marriage, teenage pregnancy, health and sex education, menstrual hygiene and personal security, alongside many other issues. The girls attending have the opportunity to attend individual counselling sessions, especially those who need specific and concentrated support.
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We also provide free period products to thousands of teenage girls each month to ensure their period does not negatively impact their personal development, education and engagement in activities. We provide Girl Support Groups in 10 centres across slum communities in Kampala, including Katanga, Naguru and Kasubi.
As of 2023 589 girls regularly attend our Girls Support groups and we have given out over 6000 free period products. Investing in adolescent girls is crucial for alleviating poverty, achieving universal primary education, promoting gender equality and addressing other factors that put girls at risk. We aim to empower teenage girls and create safer communities for young women from Uganda’s slums through our Girls Support Groups. ​
The context
We recognise that gender inequality remains one of the most seen and felt forms of discrimination in Uganda, and it is women and girls who face the most discrimination (UNDP, 2022). Like the majority of countries Uganda aims to achieve the vision of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. However, for this to materialise sustainable human development is needed, and this will not be achieved unless women and girls are able to contribute equally to their societies.
In response to this, in 2022, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Uganda Country Office announced the implementation of the Gender Equality Strategy 2022-2025.
The strategy aims to contribute to the elimination of gender inequalities and inequities that perpetuate poverty, discrimination and gender-based violence. The strategy provides a road map on how to integrate gender equality into all aspects of the country’s work and how progress can be made towards the 2030 agenda.
Our Impact
The overall aim of this project is to empower young women and to help them feel safer in their communities. To this end we offer a whole range of support services from counselling and guidance to community outreach and education. Within the project we educate teenage girls and young women on a number of issues including; forced marriage, teenage pregnancy, health and sex education, menstrual hygiene and personal security, among others.
With this education young girls are able to drive change in their communities, feel empowered to understand their value in the community and make their own choices. To open up the conversations on how girls living in the slum communities can overcome the challenges they are faced with, we support them in reaching their full potential so they can create a better future for not only themselves, but their families and future generations.
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Miriam's Story
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"When I started my period I used to use my t-shirts as sanitary pads, and then wash them to reuse the next day. This affected me emotionally since I could not socialise with my friends due to the smell and discomfort. My mother tried to help me with different methods, but they were unsuccessful until we reached out to Kids Club Kampala for assistance. Through their support and good heart, they provided sanitary pads, took me for medical check-ups and also bought me medicine. Now I am experiencing normal periods. Thank you Kids Club Kampala for saving my life."
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You can help us support more girls like Miriam.
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The Kids Club Kampala Way
Why we’re different
Our Protecting Programme is part of the wa​y we are uniquely supporting children in Kampala slums survive and thrive.
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At Kids Club Kampala, we believe that every child is unique, special and deserves to have the opportunity to reach their full potential. Our work is based on a holistic approach, where we focus on meeting the immediate needs of children and families in the slums while empowering them to bring about long-term, sustainable changes in their lives. Our approach encompasses four core project areas: feeding, protecting, educating, and skilling.
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These four areas are not siloed; they work together holistically to create a supportive environment for vulnerable children and their families. We firmly believe in a holistic approach, ensuring that children and families have their basic needs met (food, safety) so they can fully engage with and benefit from education and skills development. This approach helps them move from merely surviving to truly thriving, as stated in our theory of change.