YEWE Clubs workshop
Enlightening teenager’s access to sexual and reproductive health knowledge and services remains an important goal for Rwanda. Strive Foundation Rwanda’s initiative is a smart and innovative solution designed to give young people in Rwanda access to accurate information about sexual and reproductive health. YEWE club is an automated, interactive, and on-demand scheme that provides basic information ranging from topics on puberty, sex and pregnancy, HIV and Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) in a medium that is widely accepted and used by youth.
According to a 2014 national survey, 7 per cent of Rwandan girls aged 15 to 19 were pregnant or already mothers. Nearly one in five women would like to prevent or delay pregnancy but have an unmet need for family planning. Similarly, Rwanda also published its reproductive health law. The LAW N° 21/05/2016 OF 20/05/2016 RELATING TO HUMAN REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH has been published in the Official Gazette No 23 of 06/06/2016
“The increased number of teenage pregnancies within Strive Foundation Rwanda’s Child Headed Beneficiaries came as a major cause of fashioning these clubs in schools, because the population of these beneficiaries is increasing beyond SFR’s planned budget hence calling for immediate reproductive health lessons for this problem”, The Executive Director SFR said, while addressing the school Heads, Teachers-in-charge of Yewe clubs and local education leaders from Strive Foundation Rwanda’s occupied 10 Secondary Schools from Nyamasheke and Rusizi Districts in a synchronized workshop in Rusizi District.
Additionally, the Executive Director Mr.Muramira Bernard assumed that maybe these beneficiaries or communities didn’t have access to information regarding their reproductive Health and therefore Strive Foundation Rwanda had to hire professional local Theatre actors like Sekaganda locally known as Seburikoko to document information through drama.
Meanwhile from April 2018, after inaugurating them, Yewe clubs started their activities and performed art dram on different topics in their schools. Through their works, some girls became aware of consequences of unplanned pregnancies and how they can avoid them. Also, some schools acquired strong decisions in response to the problems highlighted in Yewe clubs performances.
Currently, through YEWE clubs, young students are empowered to identify their problems, analyze their causes and possible solutions. Then, Club members are equipped with skills to develop and perform art drama in order to sensitize, advocate and raise awareness about teenage pregnancy and other problems faced by students and youth in general.
