The work done by our country offices in East Africa is fundamental to the success of DSW. Without it we would not be the organization we are today. Through this blog we will periodically bring you success stories and interesting dispatches from the work being done with youth groups and other partners.
Muvubuka Agunjuse Youth Club
Gizamba Hellen Gimono is a peer educator with Muvubuka Agunjuse Youth Club. And because of her involvement in counseling youths at the club, she has become a confidant to her friends, encouraging them to attend the outreaches and peer education sessions run by the club.
It is because of her involvement with the youth club that Gizamba was able to counsel a mother and daughter who had issues at home.
The girl she was helping had problems in particular with her mother – her mother thought she had turned into a useless child. The mother never wanted her to associate with boys, fearing that something wrong could happen to her. The girl was in senior six at school and her mother had refused to pay her school fees and registration fees if she did not change her behaviour.
Because of this, she was brought to Muvubuka Agunjuse by the mother so that they could talk to her.
Peer-to-peer Counselling
“When the mother brought her here, I had to talk to both her and the mother. I told her about the importance of listening to and respecting her mother. While for the mother, I told her to understand the changes that young people go through during adolescence and advised her to be patient and a little more understanding with her daughter,” Gizamba Hellen Gimono, peer educator with Muvubuka said.
“I advised the girl on the importance of being to school as a girl and the impact she can make in her life and lives of other people around her. I also told her to learn to be apologetic and respect her mum and to come and talk to us in case of any problem.”
Because of this, the girl finally apologised to her mother, and her mother later agreed to pay her school fees so that she could go back to school and finish her year.
Conflict Resolved
“Muvubuka and the peer educator I talked to helped me put my life back in order, if it weren’t for them, I don’t think I would have finished my senior six. I am very grateful to them for the counseling and career guidance they gave me,” the girl said.
“I am now more comfortable discussing anything with my mother unlike in the past and in cases where I need more information; I go back to Muvubuka to talk to the Counsellors,” she added.
She finished her senior six and is now volunteering with the Uganda Red Cross Society, following the support and guidance of the peer to peer approach and the Youth to Youth Project implemented by DSW-Uganda.
For more information on DSW’s work with youth clubs in East Africa, and our Youth-to-Youth project, visit our website. Remember to follow us on Facebook and Twitter for regular updates!
