On the second last Daraja GC session of 2018, the research team helped organise a W.I.S.H. class which proved to be a great success. W.I.S.H. stands for Women of Integrity, Strength and Hope and this is a class that is part of the curriculum at Daraja. The girls attend this class each week and learn about different topics like the role of women in society, perceptions and stereotypes.

We were split up into four different groups, with each group focussing on a different aspect of society. We then discussed within our groups about how our particular aspect affected women in Kenya. For example, in the Economy group, the students discussed about the amount of spending allocated by the Kenyan government towards education and how it has changed over the past decade. We also discussed the literacy rates, how they were related to the amount of government spending on school (as in primary, middle and high school) and how this could potentially affect the economy of Kenya. After these interesting discussions were over, the entire GC shared their thoughts on their respective aspects and why women’s education in Kenya was important for multiple reasons.

We also watched an interview between Jeethu (one of our GC members) and Rosemary, the chief of a group of Twala women in Nigeria. Rosemary’s interview was really inspiring and she gave insight into how different communities have different roles for women. She spoke about how women are usually unable to support themselves and their daughters because they are dependent on their husbands but the Twala community is a place where they can do many different jobs like needlework, traditional dancing, bee keeping and managing aloe plantations. She  also described how she had helped form the Twala community where women can earn money to support themselves and be independent. Furthermore, with the help of multiple partners, the women in the Twala group are educated and informed about the Kenyan constitution, child rights and women empowerment. She is truly a women filled with strength, integrity and hope. Check out her interview here!

After watching Rosemary’s interview, we went back to our different teams and came up with song lyrics related to everything she had just covered about women empowerment and the Twala community. This was a fun task and all of us enjoyed it very much. Here are some videos of different groups reciting/singing their songs.

Team 1, Team 2, Team 3

Comment below which groups’ song you thought was the best, and any other thoughts you had on Rosemary’s interview and the WISH class as a whole.

Happy New Year!