Preparing girls for the world

Sion Girls Club, which was founded by Benigna Guidao-oas, began with only ten girls and three mentors in October 2016, and now boasts over 50 girls and ten mentors.Following a recent two-week tour to the Kunene initiative, Guidao-oas said:"Being a nurse, I saw many teenage pregnancies and how young girls suffer due to poverty and a lack of education. This often results in them turning to older men as a source of income. Because of this, I decided to start a girls' club to help them face this alarming issue in society."The club’s vision is to create a girl with the mind of a woman and the attitude of a lady with class.Guidao-Oas said their aim is to teach young women how to behave in society, to value successful women, and to help them to make informed decisions.The recent tour was attended by girls from a German exchange programme along with one from South Africa, as well as five girls from Otjiwarongo, two from Outjo and two from Kamajab and one each from Sesfontein, Fransfotien, Omaruru, Kalkfeld and Khorixas.Global partnersSince the project was founded and the partnership sealed in Otjiwarongo, the first German exchange programme took place there and expanded to the Kunene Region thereafter."The tour that concluded recently was mainly focused on getting the German delegates to see our beautiful country and to meet the girls from the Kunene Region who are supported by the project," she said.The first exchange took place in 2019 when 12 women from Namibia visited Germany, and this year it was Germany’s turn to visit Namibia.The organisation receives support from German partners, either financially or in kind."For example, we have received sewing machines and clothing that is distributed to the less fortunate," she said.She added that during the pandemic they also received food parcels from Cheetah Cement to hand out to people at local dump sites.The charity-based initiative is involved in various projects to uplift and empower the young girls and encourages them not to bow to activities that will deter them from reaching their full potential.Visit their Facebook page, Sion Girls Club, for more information.

Preparing girls for the world

Comments

Namibian Sun 2025-06-18

Please login to leave a comment

Preparing girls for the world

Comments

Namibian Sun 2025-06-18

Please login to leave a comment

Login