Strengthening Access to Sexual and Reproductive Health Education and Services
Past Project Highlights
Leave No Girl Behind
Country: Malawi
Years: 2018-23
Donor: DFID / FCDO
Leave No Girl Behind: TEAM Girl Malawi transformed the lives of 5,000 highly marginalised, out-of-school girls in Dedza, Lilongwe and Mchinji Districts.
The project improved the girls' sexual and reproductive health and self-confidence, built their literacy and numeracy skills, and enabled them to transition into school, training or employment.
Over a span of five years, Theatre for a Change trained teachers to deliver weekly Girls’ Club workshops in 40 targeted communities. The clubs used our unique and interactive approach to promote personal development skills and cover important and relevant sexual and reproductive health topics, from child marriage and early pregnancy, to HIV prevention and menstruation.
Our safeguarding team provided tailored and responsive crisis counselling sessions and case management to all girls affected by abuse. In addition, we worked with key stakeholders within each community and at district level to keep children safe and protected.
The project's external evaluation showed that 74.1% of girls had improved their life skills (a composite of sexual and reproductive health and rights, self-confidence, self-esteem and violence-related indicators) because of attending Girls' Clubs.
The number of learners who accessed HIV testing services increased from 22% at baseline to 52% at endline.
By the end of the project, 98.6% of girls agreed that they knew when and how to report abuse.
Pre-Service Teacher Training
Country: Malawi
Years: 2007-22
Donor: Medicor Foundation
From 2007 to 2022, we trained pre-service teachers in government Teacher Training Colleges across Malawi in how to protect their sexual and reproductive health. This included giving all young teachers an opportunity to test for HIV and sexually-transmitted infections.
We also trained teachers in how to facilitate participatory child-centred approaches so that they could improve the sexual and reproductive health of children in Primary Schools throughout their careers.
Once teachers graduated from the colleges, they set up Life Skills clubs in the Primary Schools and listened, with their learners, to our weekly Tisinthe! interactive radio drama broadcasts.
The teachers also organised events in the community – like interactive theatre performances and community Open Days – to bridge learning between schools, families and community members.
Our partnership with the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology was underpinned by a Memorandum of Understanding that identified Theatre for a Change as a key service provider for sexual and reproductive health education in Teacher Training Colleges and Primary Schools.
In a typical year, this work trained approximately 2,000 pre-service teachers across the country, who reached at least 10,000 children.
When teachers started working with Theatre for a Change, their average sexual and reproductive health and rights knowledge measured at 58% at baseline, rising to 94% by the end of the year.
Children scored 52% at baseline. Those who took part in Theatre for a Change clubs scored an average of 98% at endline, compared to the endline of 60% for those in control schools who did not benefit from Theatre for a Change's work.
Mobile Health Clinic
Countries: Malawi
Years: 2009-present
Donors: Multiple
In Malawi, key populations like women in sex work, their male clients, and LGBTQI+ community members are not getting access to the basic medical resources that they urgently need.
Approximately 60% of female sex workers are HIV positive (UNAIDS). Sex workers frequently experience discrimination and abuse, which they do not feel able to report.
Unintended pregnancy is a huge risk. The World Bank reports that pregnancy and childbirth complications are the second highest cause of death for teenage girls worldwide.
Our lifesaving Mobile Health Clinic takes HIV testing and counselling, sexual and reproductive health services, including condoms, family planning and essential medication, to the most at-risk ‘hotspot’ areas of Lilongwe.
We conduct outreach visits three times a week. On an average day, the clinic gives out 10,000 condoms, treats upwards of 40 patients and refers at least 10 patients for further treatment and support.
The Clinic is a critical tool at the heart of our mission to promote sexual and reproductive health and gender rights - allowing our participants to improve their health and transform their future.
We partner with the Ministry of Health to provide these vital services. The Clinic is staffed by a fully qualified Nurse, a Community Health Assistant, two trained HIV counsellors and a qualified Child Protection worker.