Girls Empowerment Network

Improving the retention and completion of education among girls aged 10-19 from low income areas of Blantyre.

Primary education is free in Malawi, and although the costs of school uniforms and the large distances children have to travel can prohibit some from attending, most are able to complete their primary education. The cost of continuing beyond primary education, however, is often beyond the means of most households; only 37% of secondary school-aged children across the country are enrolled in secondary education. Girls particularly often lack educational support which lowers their confidence and interest in school, leading many to eventually drop out.

GENET are working to improve the future opportunities of 360 vulnerable children (240 girls and 120 boys) across five schools, who live in poverty, are victims of sexual abuse or are living with HIV, by supporting them holistically to achieve better results in school and by supporting their families to earn a sustainable income.

All of the children will receive mentorship through in-school clubs as well as academic support and mental health care from trained counsellors. The project is also supporting 100 of the most economically vulnerable children by paying for their school fees, securing their education in the short term.

To ensure that parents can continue to pay for school in the longer term, GENET will provide busines training and capital investment to 25 caregivers, enabling them to start businesses which can support their families.

Finally, to address the social norms that negatively impact girls' retention and performance in school, 12 teachers from each school are participating in gender sensitive teaching, so they can better support girls to excel and complete their education. To engage the whole community on these issues, GENET is supporting students to produce a newspaper to give a voice to their needs and concerns while also convening community dialogues with local stakeholders including area chiefs, local government, teachers and parents on harmful practices.