Simameni COVID-19 Recovery Plan - program 2020 to 2022

The Simameni project which means “stand up” in Swahili seeks to improve access retention and educational opportunities for secondary-aged girls in schools from the Western and Teso regions in Uganda. The project aligns with Government of Uganda policies on gender equality and on education by tackling two key drivers of poverty namely lack of access to education and gender inequality. Project activities include: (1) providing training on gender equality and the importance of girls’ secondary school education to teachers and corresponding support to key decision makers leaders and influencers; (2) enabling student-led efforts to promote awareness about girls’ secondary school education in their communities; (3) supporting the leadership and empowerment of girls; (4) improving plans that ensure gender-responsive school facilities and policies for the prevention of school-related gender-based violence; and (5) strengthening the use of instructional content materials and strategies that promote gender equality. The project is implemented by the Canadian Teachers’ Federation (CTF) in collaboration with the Uganda National Teachers’ Union (UNATU). The project received additional funding to address the problems stemming from the COVID pandemic in three ways: (1) provision providing of immediate economic relief to families by supporting the most vulnerable girls with sanitary pads school materials and covering school fees; (2) addressing health barriers in implementing measures to prevent the spread of the virus. This includes including provision providing of hygiene and sanitation facilities such as hand-washing stations temperature guns and reusable face masks; and (3) combatting social barriers such as the stigmatization and isolation of pregnant girls at home and at school gender-based violence and early forced teenage marriage.

The expected outcomes for of this project include: (1) increasing increased the number of learners especially girls to return back to school when they re-open by mobilizing and sensitizing parents; (2) increasing increased the number of girls who were sexually abused pregnant girls and teenage mothers as well as children working in forced labour to go back to school; (3) increasing increased the acceptance and supported for childcare centers in the schools participating in the project; and (4) improved the mental health and well-being of learners parents sponsors teachers and school administrators by providing psycho-social support.