By Mahnaz M. Harrison | Project Leader
In Eastern Kenya, where female genital mutilation (FGM) has the second highest prevalence in the country, LastMile4D is working with 1,000 girls in ten schools with a grant from the Grand Challenges Canada. We are reaching the girls and their parents using VPack to educate them and other stakeholders about the harms of FGM and why the practice should be eradicated. LastMile4D also uses VPack to document in real-time the effect of its work with the girls and their families, which has immensely improved the communities’ understanding of the harms of FGM. More than 95% of the parents that have attended our educational seminars have signed up to volunteer to speak out against FGM to others. Thus far, we have reached all the girls, but not all the parents. We started our GlobalGiving campaign knowing we might need to rescue some of these 1,000 girls before we could prevail over their parents to cease and desist from performing FGM on their girls during the cutting season.
With your support of our campaign we raised funds and rescued 36 girls, one of them a 9-year old, from the scourge of FGM. We had the support of the community leaders and authorities to bring the girls to a makeshift shelter. Your contributions helped us pay for their rescue. It enabled us to support them in the shelter by providing meals, sundries, supplies and more in a supportive, safe and supervised environment. While the girls were under protection, we brought their parents to a community meeting, where at the end of the discussion on FGM they all signed declaration that they will not cut their girls.
Your contributions made a difference and with your continued support, Last Mile4D can reach more girls and their parents in Kuria, Kenya, informing them about the harms of FGM on the girls and how it impedes their future economic growth.
Please follow us on Instagram and Twitter @LastMile_4D. Also, visit our website at www.lastmile4d.org to learn about our work and make contribution to us, directly during the year. We appreciate your support during March 6th - 13th, 2020 as we compete again for a spot on the GlobalGiving Girls Fund.
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