The integrated Sexual Reproductive Health (SRH) and Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM) project in Buvuma's isolated islands, the African Child and Youth Development Initiative (ACYDI) and Orphans and Vulnerable Children empowerment Group (OVCEG) have transformed the lives of Adolescent Girls and Young Women (AGYW) by breaking the silence surrounding menstruation and HIV prevention. The partnership has empowered AGYW by establishing the first library in the islands, stocked with over 1,000 menstrual health readers, growth manuals, and SRH educational materials, drastically increasing access to information that was previously treated as a cultural taboo. Through the Community Led Monitoring (CLM) approach, 25 school health club members and 15 Village Health Teams were retrained to provide peer support and raise awareness across 10 villages, directly combating the risk of child marriage often triggered by the onset of menstruation. Furthermore, the project has addressed the critical lack of youth-friendly services identified during community data collection, with stakeholders and duty bearers pledging support to improve HIV prevention services tailored specifically to young people, including increasing access, reducing stigma, and enhancing health education. The active engagement of AGYW in the multi-stakeholder approach has ensured their voices are heard in health service delivery, contributing to strengthening quality, access, and accountability in MHM and SRH services across 52 islands. >>https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/train-150-agyw-10-24-years-on-menstrual-hygiene/reports/#menu

The African Child and Youth Development Initiative (ACYDI) and Orphans and Vulnerable Children empowerment Group (OVCEG) partnership, the Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM), sanitary pads production, and Sexual Reproductive Health (SRH) project has transformed the lives of fisherfolk, women, Adolescent Girls and Young Women (AGYW), and People Living with HIV (PLHIV) across Buvuma's isolated islands. For AGYW, the project has established the first library stocked with over 1,000 menstrual health readers and growth manuals, dramatically increasing access to SRH information that was previously treated as a taboo subject, thereby reducing school absenteeism and the risk of child marriage often triggered by the onset of menstruation. Men and boys 100 men and 40 boys trained have shifted from bullying to becoming active supporters of menstrual health, breaking cultural stigmas and creating enabling environments where fathers now provide sanitary materials and daughters stay in school. For fisherfolk and women, the project has distributed over 10,000 condoms, trained Village Health Teams to raise awareness across 10 villages, and provided essential SRH education that addresses the high HIV prevalence (11.5% in Buvuma versus 5.5% nationally) through community dialogues, music and dance, counselling services, and the promotion of HIV status disclosure and treatment adherence. PLHIV have benefited from psychosocial support that has reduced stigma and discrimination, while the project's multi-stakeholder approach involving district health teams, religious and cultural leaders, and local councils has ensured duty bearers pledge to improve access, reduce stigma, and enhance health education across the 52 islands. >>https://cl.globalgiving.org/projects/train-150-agyw-10-24-years-on-menstrual-hygiene/reports/?subid=294248 

The project has also improved hygiene facilities by renovating private bathrooms with locking doors where AGYW can safely change sanitary products, and providing disposal bins that are regularly emptied. Through this holistic model, AGYW have gained not only critical SRH knowledge but also sustainable livelihoods, enabling them to remain in school, support themselves financially, and become agents of change within their communities. This dual approach addresses the high HIV prevalence (11.5% in Buvuma versus 5.5% nationally) by keeping girls in school and economically active, reducing their vulnerability to child marriage, teenage pregnancy, and transactional sex often driven by poverty. >> https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/train-100-men-and-40-boys-in-uganda-on-menstruation/reports/?subid=254772

African Child and Youth Development Initiative (ACYDI) in partnership with Orphans and Vulnerable Children Empowerment Group (OVCEG) has positively impacted fishermen, persons living with HIV (PLHIV), and other fishing community members by combining SRH and HIV prevention education with practical skills training in bar and liquid soap production. The project has specifically targeted high-risk groups including fisherfolks, bar workers, and Female Sex Workers (FSW) through community dialogues, sensitization using music/dance/drama, and distribution of over 10,000 condoms alongside promotion of proper condom use as both a birth control and HIV prevention method. For PLHIV, the project has provided psychosocial support and counselling to help cope with stigma and improve behavioral change, with counsellors actively encouraging discordant couples to disclose their HIV status, which has empowered women (including AGYW) to seek permission from spouses to leave home for HIV care and request transport fares for clinic visits. 

The Sexual Reproductive Health (SRH) and economic empowerment project in Buvuma's isolated islands, the African Child and Youth Development Initiative (ACYDI) in partnership with Orphans and Vulnerable Children Empowerment Group (OVCEG) has positively impacted Adolescent Girls and Young Women (AGYW) by combining SRH education with practical skills training in bar and liquid soap production. The project has provided Training of Trainers (TOT) to over 20 men, 20 boys, and 30 AGYW on the relevance of using water and soap for handwashing alongside menstrual hygiene management, effectively breaking stigmas and fostering understanding across genders. Beyond health education, the soap production training has created economic opportunities for AGYW, enabling them to manufacture and sell bar and liquid soap within their island communities, thereby generating income while simultaneously improving hygiene practices. >>https://cl.globalgiving.org/projects/train-150-agyw-10-24-years-on-menstrual-hygiene/reports/?subid=294248

Team from African Child and Youth Development Initiative (ACYDI) met the staff of Malaika Junior School Mukono

Literacy training was conducted by our Project Manager to improve the reading capacity of the learners.

Improving teaching and learning through literacy and storybooks reading. 

Over 10 YALI Uganda Alumni have recieved training in Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM), WASH,Liquid Soap, Shampoo and Re-Usable Pads Production.  This project was supported by the YALI RLC EA Transformation Fund.

Over 750 community members in most at risk-populations in Buvuma islands have been trained in Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM), WASH,Liquid Soap, Shampoo and Re-Usable Pads Production.

Most at risk populations living in Buvuma islands and mainlands have been trained in Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM), WASH,Liquid Soap, Shampoo and Re-Usable Pads Production.