Femme Focus – Page 3 – Femme International

Boys Health Management Program – A Summary

It was about 10 months ago that the initial conversation about conducting a Boys Health Management Project was had with the Femme team and I in Toronto. Now, in the final week of implementation all of the preliminary ideas, plans and groundwork have been realized in Moshi, Tanzania with great success.

The Boys Health Management Project was created to include male youth in the conversation Femme International started with female youth regarding sexual health and gender equality. So far, the BHM project has reached 49 male youth, 15 participants from form 2, 13 from form 3 at Mangoto Secondary School, in the village of Kahe located outside of Moshi. An additional 21 youth were reached at the Pamoja Boys and Girls Club located in Moshi. The age range for the participants was approximately 10-19 years, with one 50 year old participant!

One of the main objectives of the BHM pilot project was to increase the knowledge of male youth in sexual health and gender equality. It is to my excitement and satisfaction to see that the objective was achieved. Christian, the Coordinator of the BHM Project, took the leading role in teaching the content of the BHM Project in Swahili. He was able to inspire and teach in a style that mixed factual information and real life examples that visibly impacted the boys. I was able to see that moment in the Form 2 workshop conducted at Mangoto Secondary School where the boys displayed their capacity to be challenged and to gain a new perspective in the exercise we created to talk about gender roles. As a facilitator, if there is a moment you’re looking to see if material is retained, understood and debated among a group of people, that was it. Beyond the visual and verbal indications given by the boys regarding their retention of the material, their post workshop quizzes admitted their high level of understanding.

Of course there are always challenges along the way, creating a culturally applicable workshop that could impact male youth seemed a daunting task at first, but with perseverance and help from the close knit Femme team we were able to overcome that obstacle.

Personally, it has been an extremely valuable experience to be able to create a curriculum and workshop with Christian and to learn and grow through the various phases of development of a new project. I have learned a great deal from not only the design and implementation process, but from the Femme staff. I am excited to see the future opportunities for the BHM project.

Currently, the Femme team, Christian and I will be going through the wrap up process of the BHM pilot project. We will be using our remaining time in Tanzania to look for funding opportunities that will allow us to scale up the BHM project. This will hopefully allow us to reach other communities surrounding Moshi, conducting workshops in areas that the FHM program previously reached. This is an essential step in bringing the conversation full circle between female and male youth in impacting their knowledge on sexual health and gender.

Given our successes, triumphs and challenges we have learned a great deal and want to take our lessons learned and knowledge and put it towards the future success of the BHM project.

Devon Malcolm, BHM Program Officer

December 5, 2014/by Sabrina

Femme Focus

Reflections about the Boy’s Health Management Program

This fall, Femme introduced the Boys Health Education program and ran a pilot project with students at a secondary school in Kahe. Below, BHE Coordinator Christian reflects on his experiences as Facilitator.

The Boys Health Management program was designed to complement the Feminine Health Management program, and the pilot project was implemented with Form 2 and Form 3 students at a secondary school in Kahe, Kilimanjaro Region.

As the Facilitator, I covered a wide range of material including: essential hygiene, gender, consent in life and in relationships, male anatomy and different sexually transmitted infections.

The workshops were active, sometimes run by the boys themselves as we encouraged participation to foster activeness among the students. Sometimes they had to stand, come to the board and fill out diagrams or help explain to their fellows their understanding of the lesson. The workshops as a whole ended with the provision of a gift, the boy health kits. The kits include all the necessary equipment that a man/boy needs to ensure they keep their bodies clean from different infections like fungus.

The success stories

It has been an amazing experience with the boys! We have learned that when impacting knowledge to an individual or group of people, the process should go hand in hand with the real life examples, whether from the individual’s experience, facilitator’s experience or from other people’s stories. The workshops are built from practical real life experiences; this style of workshop allows us creatively impact the knowledge of the participants. For example: on the topic of gender, we created charts that asked the participants to come up to the board and fill out the different roles or duties belonging to a mother and father. Further into the lesson we asked the students to fill out the roles and responsibilities of a single mother and father. The purpose of this being we wanted students to challenge the way they think about the differences in gender roles.

Also, it has been a good experience as the facilitator. I am getting a lot of feedback from the boys as they have reported to me saying they are using the kits and it has been good for them in keeping their bodies clean because “they fill heavy when they are dirty but very light and comfortable after bath/shaving.”

Christian Massawe, BHM Coordinator

December 2, 2014/by Sabrina

Femme Focus

Distribution Day at Mwika Secondary!

Today was distribution day at Mwika Secondary School.

Our team has spent the last two weeks conducting workshops with nearly 200 students at this school, working with the Form 3, Form 5 and Form 6 girls.

The village of Mwika is located about an hour outside of Moshi Town, in the stunning foothills of Kilimanjaro. The rural setting means that the majority of residents are subsistence farmers, growing bananas, mangoes, maize or beans. There is a booming local economy with a huge market in town on Tuesdays and Fridays – where you can find everything from shoes to pineapples to imported fabric! The secondary school has about 1200 day and boarding students, and teaches vocational skills such as farming and agriculture alongside the traditional academic curriculum.

Today, Femme’s team returned to the school to distribute Femme Kits to our beneficiaries. If you are a teacher, you understand the struggle of containing a roomful of excited students. If you are a development worker, than you understand the chaos of distribution with beneficiaries! And if you are a traveler, you understand the struggles of attempting to organize people that do not speak English.

Thankfully, we were able to get the girls into somewhat recognizable lines, and give them their Kits. It was an exciting day – the girls were so excited to receive their Kits, and immediately began exploring them with their friends.

Our Femme Kits are designed to contain everything a young girl will need to stay safe, healthy and confident during her period. Central to these Kits are reusable menstrual management supplies – either a menstrual cup, or reusable pads. This was the first time Femme was offering a choice of pads or a cup to our girls, providing them with the option that helps them feel the most confident and comfortable. The majority of the girls chose menstrual cups, but many of the younger girls opted for the reusable pads. Regardless of their choice, we are thrilled that these girls will be able to manage her period in a safe, healthy and sustainable way!

If you want to help support our programs in East Africa – visit our Holiday Giving Campaign! Honour a loved one this holiday season by making a gift in their name, and we will send them an Artisan Thank-You card with photos from our work! Please consider giving them gift of confidence, and making a difference in the life of a young woman.

Sabrina Rubli

November 25, 2014/by Sabrina

Femme Focus

My First Experience With A Menstrual Cup!

Our very own Nice Kirumu, FHM Program Facilitator (Tanzania) writes about her first experiences with a menstrual cup!

The first time I heard about a menstrual cup was when I was volunteering with Anza International here in Moshi. At first, I thought it was like a real cup! I was surprised because I’ve never imagine of something like that could be used as for menstrual management, and I hoped that one day I would be able to use it.

A few months later I joined the Femme International team to work as the FHM Program Coordinator. The organization provides Feminine Health Management education to the school girls and sustainable menstrual management tools for them to use during their menstrual cycle. One of the products they provide are menstrual cups as one of the sustainable way of menstrual management. It has been seen that many girls especially those who live in poor families in rural areas, will miss school during their menstrual cycle because they cannot afford to purchase sanitary napkins each month. Hence, they use other materials such as pieces of old cloth, cotton, leaves or even stay at home until their period is over.

As part of the Femme staff, I had the opportunity to try a menstrual cup to learn how it felt! My supervisors were excited to see that I wanted to try the cup, they taught me how to use it and told me that it is a wonderful idea and I will enjoy it. So when my period came, I washed my hands take it, carefully fold it and insert it. It was hard and hurt little bit, but after few minutes I succeeded to insert it perfectly! For a few hours I wasn’t sure if it would come out, or maybe it might get full and start leak. I was surprised to see that I couldn’t get any kind of stains on my pants, or on the clothes! I stayed with it for 12 hours and in the evening when I went to bath I take it out slowly, poured the blood out, rinsed it with clean water and inserted it again!

I was feeling good because it’s very simple and I don’t have to use pads anymore!

Since it worked well on me, I am no longer using pads or tissues. I’m feeling free and I can do anything in my period including swimming, without worrying. I can help anyone who wants to know about it by explain about it. The good thing is the lifetime of the Ruby Cup: one cup can be used up to ten years therefore you don’t have to exchange it with new one from time to time.

I advise girls and women that these cups are very useful, especially to the poor girls and women who cannot afford to purchase the sanitary napkins. Even for those who can purchase sanitary napkins I advise them to start using the menstrual cups because it can help you to save money, abstain from getting fungus and infections, being free to do all kind of work and mostly is to enable young girls to attend school when they are in menstrual cycle without any problems and hence reach their goals in the future!

Verynice African Kirumu

November 19, 2014/by Sabrina

Femme Focus

Men Talk: Menstrual Cycle – Blessing or a Curse?

Femme firmly believes that men and boys must be included in the conversation about menstruation, and actively contribute to breaking down the stigma.We are lucky to have met so many men in Mathare who are not only eager to talk about gender equality, but acknowledge the need for intervention.

We asked our Community Outreach Officer Nelson Otieno what he thought about menstruation, and what other young men in Mathare thought. We wanted to find out if they believe it is an important issue to address, and how we should start this very important conversation. This is what he had to say.

#HeForShe

The menstrual cycle is the monthly series of changes a woman’s body goes through in preparation for the possibility of pregnancy. Each month, one of the ovaries releases an egg — a process called ovulation.

But for a long time this issue has been ignored in Africa especially by Men, it is my belief that the menstrual health is an obligation for each of us but the African men have walked away from this issue for a very long time. What I always wonder is menstrual cycle a blessing or a curse to African men?

But if it is curse then it means that our women cannot give birth since the ovaries cannot release the eggs for fertilization .But the curse is not my concern my biggest concerns is that the natural process (menstrual cycle) comes with big problem and challenges to young girls in Kenya and in Africa at large, For young girls they do not understand the changes that are happening in their bodies since this is an issue that they cannot discuss with their Mothers and the issue is regarded as a taboo to discuss with men. Another main issue is that the access of sanitary towels is an issue so girls and women use anything from rags to feathers, from cotton wool to old cloths and imagine when the temperatures are high the way they are in sub Saharan Africa, this means that when girls are on their cycle it means that they cannot go to school hence their performance are lower compared to their male counter parts.

As a man I feel more obliged, and I believe it is my responsibility to see that women can have access to sanitary towels, and that they are not disempowered because of nature, and what is beyond their control.

A girl absent from school due to menstruation for four days in 28 days (a month) loses 13 learning days, equivalent to two weeks of learning, in every school term. It is estimated that within the four years of high school the same girl loses 156 learning days equivalent to almost 24 weeks out of 144 weeks of learning in high school. Consequently, a girl child potentially becomes a “school dropout” while she is still attending school. In addition, the girl child has to deal with emotional and psychological tension associated with the menstrual process. As a result, menstruating girls opt to stay at home due to lack of facilities to help them manage their periods than go to school

Nelson Otieno

October 5, 2014/by Sabrina

Femme Focus

Putting the MEN in MENstruation – why including men in the conversation is so important.

Emma Watson recently gave a powerful speech at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City, an event hosted by UN Women, marking the launch of the HeForShe Campaign. This campaign calls out to men and boys to join in the fight for gender equality. Take a few minutes to watch her incredible speech now:

“I want men to take up this mantle. So their daughters, sisters and mothers can be free from prejudice, but also so that their sons have permission to be vulnerable and human too—reclaim those parts of themselves they abandoned and in doing so be a more true and complete version of themselves,”

Over the next 12 months, the campaign intends to mobilize one billion men and boys as advocates and agents of change for gender equality. ”We need boys and men working with us. HeForShe is a global solidarity movement to end gender inequality by 2030. The goal is to engage men and boys as advocates and agents of change in the effort to achieve equality. When women are empowered, the whole of humanity benefits,” said UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka.

At Femme International, we strongly believe that including men and boys in the road towards gender equality is the key to its success. We need to challenge men and boys to recognize that gender equality not only benefits their sisters, wives and mothers, but also themselves. A just society is a prosperous society, and we need to make it happen.

This fall, Femme is proudly putting the MEN in MENSTRUATION! We are happy to announce the launch of a new Boys Health Education Program that will be implimented in Moshi, Tanzania. The program will focus on teaching boys essential reproductive and sexual health lessons, but also focusing on the bigger picture of gender equality, and of course, menstruation.

Nelson proudly shows why Menstruation Matters to him

Boys never have the opportunity to learn what menstruation is, as this knowledge is passed on to young girls in secrecy – which only makes it more taboo! Naturally, boys will find this ritual bizarre, even a bit scary, which translates into hurtful schoolyard mockery. By using education and conversation, we will teach boys that menstruation is natural and normal, and nothing to be scared of. Every woman is affected by this phenomenon, and she does not deserve to be mocked for it. We want to encourage open conversations about this, and to build a network of young people that are not afraid to be proud of their bodies.

This fall, we will be engaging 200 young men in the communities around Moshi, encouraging them to talk about what gender equality means to them. It is our hope that this program will not only create men who are actively aware of the gender disparity, but also active in reducing it. Women may be the backbone of society, but men need to be there too. We will not be able to build fair, just and successful societies if half of the population is left out of the process. Men and women need to be engaged equally, and we can’t wait to start working with the men and boys of East Africa.

We want to change the way the world thinks about menstruation, and we need men and women to contribute to a global conversation in order to achieve this goal.

To learn more about how you can donate, click here.

Sabrina Rubli

September 22, 2014/by Sabrina

Femme Focus

Building Confidence through Health Education

Femme International recently launched an Indiegogo Campaign to help fund our fall programming, and if you have yet to see our campaign video, we urge you to take a few minutes to watch it right now!

Our Feminine Health Management Program uses interactive education to teach girls how their bodies work, and how to stay safe and healthy, every day of the month. Workshops cover topics such as female anatomy, reproductive health, puberty, the menstrual cycle and healthy menstrual management. Key to the success of the program is creating a safe space, where girls feel comfortable talking, and asking questions about their bodies – something they otherwise do not have the opportunity to do. By creating this space and facilitating these conversations, Femme is slowly changing the way girls think about their bodies.

The second component of our program is the distribution of Femme Kits – designed to contain everything a girl needs to manage her period each month. The central component to these Kits are reusable menstrual products – menstrual cups for secondary school girls, and reusable pads for primary school girls.

By providing reusable menstrual management resources, Femme is removing the financial burden of menstruation, and giving girls a new sense of freedom, independence and confidence.

At Femme International, we believe that menstruation should not be a source of shame but rather a source of pride. Not only are we working towards providing young women with the means to effectively manage their bodies each month, we are working to build confidence and a global appreciation for a bodily function that is entirely natural and normal.

The taboos surrounding menstruation and the female body have become a destructive source of oppression for the female gender – a stigma that is severely affecting these women’s quality of life.

Femme International is working to change these destructive practices and build confidence, one girl at a time.

This fall, Femme International is planning on implementing the Feminine Health Management Program with 500 schoolgirls in the Mathare slum of Nairobi, Kenya.

500 more young women will be given the essential education and resources they need to stay safe, healthy and in school – every day of the month.

500 more young women will have confidence to play games and sports – every day of the month.

500 more young women will understand that they do not need to feel shame or embarrassment towards their bodies.

500 more young women will have the chance to take advantage of every academic and professional opportunity to come their way.

500 more young women will no longer have to resort to unsafe and risky behavior in an attempt to manage their periods.

500 more young women will be empowered.

We need $35,000 to make this happen! This will cover the costs of procuring Femme Kit supplies and educational materials, the training of local women to facilitate workshops in Mathare, and the logistical expenses to make it happen.

This is where we need your support. Together, we can help the next generation of Kenyan women become strong, confident and active members of their communities.

Let’s keep young women healthy and in school, every day of the month. Period.

Please take a few moments to take the following Action Steps!

View the video!
Share the campaign with five friends or family members
Consider making a contribution – you can keep a girl in school for as little as $10.

Sabrina Rubli

June 5, 2014/by Sabrina

Femme Focus

MENSTRAVAGANZA – Celebrating Menstrual Hygiene Day in Toronto!

On May 28th, the world is celebrating the first ever Menstrual Hygiene Day! Spearheaded by Wash United, more than 80 NGOs around the world are working together to start the conversation about menstruation, and break down the taboo!

Menstruation is stigmatized around the world – including Canada – and the consequences are extremely destructive to young women in developing communities. There is no reason why a woman’s body should be such a source of shame and embarrassment that it stops her from attending school and participating in daily activities.

How does your country think about menstruation?

Here are some of the facts:

– In Kenya, the average girl will miss 4.9 days of school each month during her period, adding up to about 20% of the school year.

– In Ghana, girls miss up to 5 days a month attributed to inadequate sanitation facilities and the lack of sanitary products at school as well as physical discomfort due to menstruation, such as cramps.

– 32.5% of schoolgirls from South Asia had not heard about menstruation prior to menarche and an overwhelming 97.5% did not know that menstrual blood came from the uterus.

– 83% of girls in Burkina Faso and 77% in Niger have no place at school to change their sanitary menstrual materials.

While working in Mathare over the last year, we have learned that over 75% of girls had no idea what their period was before it started. They reported feeling scared, embarrassed and ashamed, causing them to make the choice to stay in their homes during their periods.

Menstrual Hygiene Day is a huge step towards starting the conversation about menstruation, and helping girls around the world stay in school, every day of the month! Over 80 partners around the world are coming together, planning events, and we want YOU to join us in Toronto!

Femme will be co-hosting MENSTRAVAGANZA at the Revue on Thursday May 29th at the Revue Cinema on Roncesvailles. The event is presented by Canadian MH Day Partners Crankytown, YOUR BOX CLUB and Period Makeover, and will be a night filled with period cinema and discussion.

Crankytown will be announcing the winners of 2014 Crankyfest, followed by an exclusive screening of the winning short films! Crankyfest is the world’s only online film festival dedicated to menstruation and the three co-founders are dedicated to changing the way menstruation is viewed in the media.

We will be screening the award winning documentary ‘Menstrual Man’, the remarkable story of Arunachalam Muruganantham – the Indian man who has started the sanitary pad revolution in India.

Following the films, we will be hosting a brief panel discussion about why menstruation is such an important issue to talk about – here in Canada and around the world. The first twenty guests will receive special gift bags from YOUR BOX CLUB.

Tickets are $10, with all proceeds going to our educational programming in Kenya.

#MenstruationMatters to our dedicated team, why does it matter to you? Join the conversation on May 28th.

Sabrina Rubli

May 26, 2014/by Sabrina

Femme Focus

Femme in Moshi: A Training of Trainers with TEACH!

Co-Founder Sabrina Rubli with TEACH trainees!

Femme is growing! Last week our field staff spent time in Moshi, Tanzania to partner with TEACH: Time To Empower Africa’s Children, a UK-based NGO. TEACH has been present in Moshi for the past few years and has developed several strong programs which focus on the education and empowerment of young people in their communities. TEACH combines social enterprise with community development to create an innovative and effective development model.

Currently, TEACH is working towards the implementation of a new Female Health Program in the summer of 2014, which will focus on providing women and girls in the community with essential health education and sustainable menstrual management supplies.

Femme staff conducted a two-day Training of Trainers session with TEACH staff to teach them about the Feminine Health Management program we have implemented in Mathare. The overall goal of the Training was to share specific challenges and successes Femme has encountered while in the field, in the hopes that TEACH’s project this summer can be as successful as possible!

Each female trainer was provided with a Femme Kit, including a reusable menstrual cup, in order to help her better explain to beneficiaries how they work, and how to properly use it!

Two TEACH trainees make a presentation on proper usage of a menstrual cup.

Ten TEACH staff were present for the Training, and the positive energy in the room was exciting! Day One covered basic female anatomy, the menstrual cycle, and the introduction of the menstrual cup! We also focused on the importance of establishing safe spaces within workshops and answering student’s questions in a respectful and appropriate way.

On Day Two, we explored teaching techniques and discussed how keep students engaged and how to make the workshops interactive, fun and educational. The session completed with trainees making short presentations on what they had learned over the course of the session, and facilitating a variety of activities.

Femme and TEACH share similar values when in comes to development programming, and we excited to continue this partnership as the years go on. We are thrilled that they will be implementing such a high quality Female Health Project this summer! International Development should be a collaborative effort between organizations and communities, and by partnering with like-minded groups, we are ensuring the best possible programs are delivered to beneficiaries. Femme and TEACH will continue to discuss future opportunities for partnerships, in Moshi and Nairobi!

Sabrina Rubli

May 9, 2014/by Sabrina

Femme Focus

It’s National Volunteer Week!

This week, Canada is celebrating National Volunteer Week to recognize and celebrate the efforts of dedicated volunteers across Canada. Femme is lucky enough to have an incredible group of hard working and passionate volunteers in many sectors that have contributed in a big way to Femme’s success!

Here, we are profiling a few volunteers whose commitment to Femme has gone above and beyond. The following volunteers have contributed to our design, research, fundraising and finances and have been instrumental to Femme’s success over the past year.

James Young is a budding graphic designer who has used his talents to create infographics and images for Femme over the past year, including our amazing logo! He consistently finds new and creative ways to help us share information in exciting ways.

“Volunteering and working with Femme International is hugely rewarding. It’s exciting to see my contributions use to further such a worthy cause!”

Derek Youdelis is a Toronto-based accountant who has dedicated countless hours of valuable time to help manage Femme’s books and accounting needs. Having Derek around to answer our many financial questions has been a much-needed resource!

“I volunteer for Femme because I believe that everybody, regardless of sex, has a the equal right to education and to develop and achieve everything that they are capable of.”

Jennifer Rubli has a background in psychology and medicine, with extensive experience in running research projects. In January 2014, she traveled to Nairobi to help organize and conduct a research project with 150 girls, and continues to be a valued member of our team.

“Being a woman is not a choice. For as long as humans have existed, women have been menstruating, and yet only in the very recent past has it become a development issue. Gender equality is far from a reality, and just the opportunity to finish school literally makes a world of difference. I love that with Femme’s unique, educational yet simple approach, we can even the playing field a little, if we’re lucky, enough to give these girls a fighting chance at a better future.”

Devon Malcolm is Femme’s first intern! A current post-graudate student in International Development, Devon has a background in fundraising and sexual health education in rural Tanzania. In 2014, Devon is helping Femme build a fundraising strategy and design a Sexual Health Education program targeted to boys in Mathare.

“Despite the fact that I am able to work alongside the founders, two inspiring individuals, I really believe n Femme International’s mandate. Empowering women and striving for equality by addressing female hygiene, sexual health and menstruation. I want to contribute towards achieving equality and I feel Femme’s programmes on women’s health do just that.”

Femme is lucky to have the expertise of so many talented individuals, and we are so grateful for their contributions!

Sabrina Rubli

April 10, 2014/by Sabrina