6Mayo/AllAfrica/ By Mugini Jacob
Resumen: Alrededor de 60 jóvenes de Tanzania se han comprometido a luchar contra el matrimonio infantil, la mutilación genital femenina (MGF) en cinco salas de Tarime Distrito en la región de Mara. Los estudiantes y adolescentes participaron en un entrenamiento intensivo sobre salud reproductiva, organizado por el Foro de la dignidad de los niños (CDF) en colaboración con el Plan Internacional de Tanzania recientemente.
About 60 youths have vowed to combat child marriage, female genital mutilation (FGM) in five wards of Tarime District in Mara Region.
The students and out -of-school teenagers made the promise shortly after attending an intensive training on reproductive health, organized by Children’s Dignity Forum (CDF) in collaboration with Plan International Tanzania recently.
They hailed the training, expressing hope that it will help to save many girls from FGM and child marriage, thanks to the European Union (EU) for funding the initiative under an ambitious project designed to end child marriage and FGM in the region.
«I am now going to take the responsibility of educating my colleagues on the effects of FGM, child marriage and teenage pregnancies», said Elizabeth Daniel (16). Elizabeth, a Form three student at Bomani Secondary School where she is the head girl says she will take the advantage of her position to advance anti-FGM and child marriage campaign at the public school and beyond.
The school which is located in Tarime Town Council, has about 800 students most of them girls hailing from communities prone to FGM and child marriage. «I will make good use of my position as the head girl to provide reproductive health education.
Since our school has a large number of girls, I believe I will save many of them,» Elizabeth told the ‘Daily News’ shortly after successfully attending the training held at a hotel in Tarime town last week.
Elizabeth says her dream is to become a doctor after her studies and that the training had added value on her life. She further stressed the importance of every child to be assisted in achieving her or his educational dreams instead of allowing such dreams to be cut short by harmful cultural practices.
«I would like to become a nurse or doctor and the training I have got here will enable me to realise my dream» Elizabeth pointed. Tatu Tatu( 17) another beneficiary of the training shared with this reporter a sad story about her young sister who was made pregnant at the age of 13 and promised to dedicate part of her time in fighting child marriage and teenage pregnancies.
«I have a young sister who was married at the age 14 after she become pregnant when she was only 13. She was studying at a primary school in neighbouring Kenya.
Thanks God that I have attended this training for the first time and I will now go around providing education to many young girls», Tatu who lives in the small town of Sirari, said.
On his side Joseph Mwita (16) says the training had made them understand that child marriage and FGM are illegal acts, thus he will now join the battle against the practices in the area.
«I will provide education to my family and neighbouring homes and that is what Iam going to do» Joseph who completed his ordinary secondary education (Form IV) in 2014 at Inchugu Secondary School said.
Facilitators of the training were medical and social welfare government experts from Tarime District Council. Mr Abel Gichaine, a Social Welfare Officer of Tarime District said the target was to train 60 peer educators on adolescent and health reproductive as part of fresh strategies aimed at curbing FGM and child marriage in the area under the EU funded project.
The project is jointly implemented by Plan International Tanzania and CDF, a local non-government organization currently leading anti- FGM campaign in Mara Region with Tarime District being the most targeted area.
«FGM has close effects on health reproductive and we are expecting the number of girls line up to undergo FGM in December this year to go down. After FGM many girls have been practicing unsafe sex and others becoming victims of child marriage.
These are other things that we want to end «, Mr Gichaine told the ‘Daily News’. The trained peer educators are expected to reach nearly 2,000 teenagers between May and November something which is expected to reduce the number of girls line up to undergo FGM in the five targeted wards in December .
The wards are; Sirari, Sabasaba, Susuni, Matongo and Nyamwaga, according to the official. » We are going to make close monitoring and evaluation in order to ensure that the set target is achieved «, he said.
Mr Gichaine said the government takes the EU, CDF and Plan International Tanzania as important partners supporting on-going efforts made to end FGM and child marriage in Tarime.
The Project Officer from CDF, Ms Kambibi Kamugisha said adolescent and sexual reproductive health education is keenly designed to reduce child marriage, teenager pregnancies and FGM cases in the area.
Fuente de la noticia: http://allafrica.com/stories/201605061141.html
Fuente de la imagen: https://plan-international.org/sites/files/plan/styles/xl__original/public/field/field_image_listing/201210-moz-16.jpg?itok=maFxuhJy
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