African Girls Can held its first ever Empowerment Camp at St. Katherine School in Lira, Uganda on August 23-25, 2019. The theme of the two-day session was “Building my Future through Education” and it ended with a meeting (with cake!) for all 13 girls’ families so that they could see what their daughters had learned. The fun team and confidence building exercises were professionally facilitated by Maria Ibanda from the organization Lions Quest Uganda and had an ambitious, carefully planned agenda.
Learning in Uganda is characterized by memorization of many subjects. It is not experiential, which is proven to help build the “soft skills” (self-esteem, communication, problem solving etc.) that will aid people building productive lives. This is why the opportunity to spend time in this way is so beneficial to the girls. Read an essay on the importance of soft skills.
None of the girls had ever experienced anything like this before – they gradually became more comfortable and, by the end, they didn’t want the experience to end! St. Katherine School allowed the girls to consolidate into one dormitory after Term II let out and this was a bonding experience for them, especially during meal time when they prepared their own dinners.
The purpose of the camp was three-fold:
- For the sponsored students to appreciate the education opportunity they have in order for them to make the best of it.
- For the students to interact and have fun with one another.
- To engage the parents fully in the value of girls’ education and the potential of their daughters.
Day 1
The first afternoon was spent setting the goals and tone of the camp, and getting to know one another. The methods used to set the atmosphere were mostly games and songs. They made their first paper airplanes and played games that required teamwork and some involving the use of senses like expression without oral communication. They created “I Aspire” posters as a way of introducing themselves.
Goals included:
- Exploring ways of understanding ourselves and building our potential.
- Deepening our understanding of how our decisions today affect our future.
- Appreciating the importance of education.
- Having fun.
The girls began by listing what the expected to “get” and “give” during the camp and the day ended with reflection, music, and dance.
Day 2
This was a very full day of “firsts” for the girls. It began energetically with waking at 5:30am and having breakfast, exercise, music, dance, and an invocation.
Using the “River of Life” illustration, each girl drew a river of their own life showing their challenges and major milestones and achievements. They broke into smaller groups for sharing. The session was very reflective and emotional for the girls as they realized that some of them have gone through so much, but also overcome so much (in some cases the same challenges relating to poverty). They also realized that no condition is permanent and life is full of uncertainties. It’s not a smooth ride, but they are also full of potential and they have the ability to achieve the goals they establish for themselves.
Using a SWOT analysis, the girls worked as individuals, then in small teams, then as an entire group to specify their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. They then identified ways of overcoming their weaknesses and how to maximize the opportunities they currently have. During the group discussions, the girls gave each other advice on how to deal with various obstacles. The next step was to form study buddies and create personal time tables to commit to performing better in the coming term (final trimester of 2019).
The day ended with the girls reflecting on who their role models are, including some they have read about. They wrote down what they have learned from their role models and how they will emulate them in order to achieve their dreams.
Day 3
To conclude the Empowerment Camp, each girl had a parent or representative (some girls had more than one) attend a full meeting of the organization. The Deputy Head Teacher in charge of Administration at St. Katherine was also in attendance. One of the S5 students, Acen Vivian Leah had compiled a summary of the camp and read it aloud to the parents. The girls also presented a short skit on the importance of girls’ education and AGC’s sponsorship opportunity.
One of the most fun happenings during the two days was the filming of African Girls Can’s very first video. It features all 13 girls telling the world why girls’ education is a wise investment!
We hope to give every girl in our program at least one opportunity to participate in Empowerment Camp during her lower secondary school years. It is affirming of her self-worth and a springboard to better performance at school.
