Beera Muvumu, Yogera! (Be Bold, Speak Up!)

Health2023

Apr 25

Uganda | Information Providers | 2023

Habari!

We are Information Providers, a vibrant group of young volunteers who are passionate about lowering the rate of teenage pregnancies in the Namayumba Sub-county, Wakiso District in Uganda.

17 - 24 years old
Namayumba

The Right-Sized Problem

Uganda reports a high teenage pregnancy rate of 25%. In our hometown of Namayumba, 1,015 cases were recorded from June to July 2023. Think about it–more than a thousand young girls’ dreams are put on hold because of unexpected motherhood. Why? A culture of silence, powered by those who think they can take advantage.

What did we do?

In Namayumba, we didn’t just jump in to address teenage pregnancy. As talks on sexuality are considered taboo, we started off by earning the trust and acceptance of our community.

We went on a series of pre-campaign initiatives which addressed the community’s concerns. Our first step was organizing a blood donation drive, where staff were able to share information on teenage pregnancies as we drew blood. We also distributed 330 tree seedlings to households and held a communal tree planting event, as a response to environmental conservation concerns. Continuing with the environmental theme, volunteers came together for a community-wide cleaning drive in the Namayumba Town Council.

Before even starting our campaign, we went on a fact-finding mission to see for ourselves how big teenage pregnancy really is. We visited health facilities and interviewed 334 people (187 were girls) in six different places. From our research, we discovered that 86.5% of pregnant teenagers were reported in Namayumba Health Center. This is why we focused our campaign in Namayumba, because here is where we are needed the most.

Each of these activities served as a way to strengthen partnerships in the community. With the trust bank filled, we finally launched Beera Muvumu, Yogera! (Be Bold, Speak Up!), a campaign that seeks to end teenage pregnancy and promote access to sexual reproductive health information services. Community dialogues, seminars and workshops became spaces for dialogues where the dangers of teenage pregnancy and the significance of education for young girls were emphasized. In attendance were youth, their parents, community leaders and religious members, showcasing the necessity of community involvement in curbing teenage pregnancies.

For our message to reach the most remote corners of Uganda, we turned to traditional radio. Going live on 89.2 CBS FM, a local radio station with the biggest listenership in Uganda, we let our voices be heard loud and clear.

Campaign Impact

This campaign is a testament to the power of collective responsibility and education. The youth in Namayumba now have more information on teenage pregnancy and are comfortable to talk about sexual reproductive health. They are empowered to speak up, serving as examples for fellow youth to do the same.

Bringing to light the seriousness of teenage pregnancy has led to community members and schools joining our efforts. Our conversations reached government bodies, and political and technical leaders in the region, and they would like to advance initiatives to eliminate teenage pregnancy.

The effectiveness of this campaign is reflected in the numbers too–in District Biostat, teenage pregnancy has decreased by as much as 20%!