Nov 30, 2018 | Events
The girl child is affected by many issues in this ever changing world which is why we were excited to host the Adolescent Girls & Young Women Symposium on November 28th 2018.
The symposium was supported by the first lady Mrs Neo Masisi and the National AIDS Coordination Agency under the theme ‘My Girl’. The objectives of the symposium were to discuss issues affecting the girl child, intergenerational relationships, issues that can limit access to sexual reproductive health, HIV services and teenage pregnancy.
In attendance were 15 of our former and current leadership participants as well as participants of our Young Mothers’ Support Group. The First Lady, a social worker, guidance and counselling teacher and two of our Young Mothers engaged in a panel discussion.
The First Lady continued to emphasize the importance of becoming good role models for young girls and urged caregivers to encourage support for their girl children. She highlighted the important value of education and advised the young girls to take advantage of the opportunity.
First Lady Masisi finished her speech by reminding them “to be comfortable in their own skin.”
Sep 7, 2018 | Beneficiaries, Program Updates
After not doing too well in her BGCSE examinations, Rachel found herself slowly becoming part of the furniture at home. She was home for a little over a year with nothing to do and absolutely no prospects until she heard about the Finding the Leader Within program from one of our employees.
She joined the program in February 2018 and has not looked back since.
The 6-month leadership program funded by the FACET Foundation targets unemployed and out of school youth aged between 18 and 25 years old. During the program, Rachel developed her interpersonal skills, emotional intelligence, CV writing skills, public speaking and ICT skills. As part of the program, she also learned how to maintain a healthy lifestyle, as well as financial literacy.
Towards the end of the program, she participated in the job shadowing exercise, which is required for graduation. During her job shadowing, she worked at the Mochudi Library. At the Mochudi Library, she learned phone etiquette and how to work with children.
This experience is why when an opportunity to study for a certificate in Early Childhood emerged, she grabbed it with both hands. Rachel pursued the course for 6 months in which she passed with a Merit and is now due to start a new job as teacher at a Day Care Centre in Gaborone!
Aug 15, 2018 | Beneficiaries, Program Updates
In July of 2018, two of our participants under the English Access Micro scholarship program secured themselves a spot in the Girls Fly Programme Africa, made possible by Women in Aviation Botswana.
Boipelo and Michelle had to submit an essay on aviation related topics, as well as possess clean and appealing academic records to be considered for the programme. They were then selected alongside 19 other local girls to participate in the week long program at Paramount Leadership & Adventure Camp in Johannesburg, South Africa.
The GFPA Foundation aims to empower the next generation of aviation and space leaders in Africa by shaping and developing future leaders in the STEM sphere. During the camp the girls were exposed to different aspects of the aviation industry with the goal to broaden the girls’ minds on careers they could pursue.
The camp was filled with networking and advancement opportunities which saw one of our participants gain a South African female pilot as a mentor.
Sep 22, 2017 | Beneficiaries
Atang Setshwane, also known as a “The Warrior” in Judo circles is 1 meter 40cm tall. She has the most dazzling and friendly smile, however, when she is in competition the smile goes away and is traded with intense concentration as she eliminates her opponents.
Stepping Stones International uses exposure to sporting activities, such as judo, to encourage young people to develop balance, flexibility and channel frustrations into a positive outlet.
Atang Setshwane joined our Judo Club in 2016. At just 15 years old, she already demonstrated talent and discipline, and quickly acquired new techniques. Her hard work and dedication paid off when she brought home a silver medal from her first judo tournament in Gaborone.
Two weeks later, Atang went on to qualify for the 5th Edition of the Botswana Games in 2017. This was the first time judo was introduced to the Games. Atang reached the Botswana Games podium twice, winning silver and gold, defeating a seasoned national athlete. She was featured on BTV’s national broadcast.
Atang is well-positioned to enrol in Botswana’s National Judo Team, and potentially participate in the African Games in 2018 and the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Atang’s adorable smile is deceiving. While she is sweet, she is a powerhouse on the mats.
Jul 4, 2017 | Program Updates
Communities have a tremendous influence on the wellbeing of our children.
Our ‘Ke Boikarabelo Jwa Rona’ (Setswana for “It’s our Responsibility”) project sought to improve the response to and prevention of Child Sexual Abuse (CSA) cases through improved service quality and reporting and enhanced community ownership of the Botswana Children’s Act.
SSI conducted research on the preparedness of service providers to handle child sexual abuse and exploitation cases.
As a result, 10 key recommendations, based on modelling, were developed to improve the response to child sexual abuse and prevent this heinous crime in the future. We circulated a petition in Botswana and internationally for people to support change, garnering 21,400 signatures of solidarity.
SSI worked with service providers (police, social workers, health care providers, magistrates and educators) using a scorecard that enabled them to assess their preparedness for handling child sexual abuse cases and develop work plans to improve service delivery.
