Zawadi supported and driven to approach life from a brighter and focused angle

18 year old Zawadi, fifth-born in a family of six, was born and raised in a remote village in Kwale county. They lived in a mud-walled house without water or electricity, and also lacked proper sanitation facilities like toilets and latrines. They survived on hand to mouth and majorly depended on their father who engaged in casual labor who earned as little as 4.20 Euros on a good day. Zawadi attended school from nursery level upto class 7; and in 2019 she dropped out of school due to lack of school fees, and the poverty situation which worsened at home.

The  family really struggled to make ends meet. Zawadi lacked basic essentials such as sanitary towels, food and clothing, which she greatly needed. This made her vulnerable to exploitation. At the age of 15,  Zawadi was lured by men of ages ranging from 20 to 25 years who were mainly bodaboda operators. They would make advances towards her and give her approximately 0.42 euros.  Sadly, she became a victim of sexual exploitation. Her exploitation became rampant after her mother was hospitalised after contracting tuberculosis; and she had no choice but to look for ways to get money.  Her grandmother, who looked after her during this time, lacked knowledge of what was happening and left the girl to solely make her own decisions. Zawadi was sexually exploited for a year and a half before she was identified as a child in need of rescue and intervention. “I felt sad about life when engaging in sexual activities and I wished that one day would stop,” Zawadi said.

In 2021, Zawadi was identified by a Child Protection Committee (CPC) member who was concerned about her well being. The CPC member noted Zawadi’s absence from school and her unusual behaviour, and reported the matter to the sub-county children’s officer who linked her with the child protection officer. She was vetted and enrolled into the Building a Future Project in April 2021. Zawadi was offered psychosocial support, counselling support and received a dignity pack with sanitary towels, detergents, petroleum jelly, undergarments, and a bar soap. She was also enrolled at a vocational training institute where she chose to pursue tailoring and received 71.35 Euros to cater for her full school fees at the vocational training institute. She also received learning materials such as tape measure, threads, cotton, hand needles, cutting materials, bobbin and case, seam ripper, cutting scissors,books, pencils and rubbers, and a pair of school uniform to enhance her fashion and design course; and the National Industrial Training Authority (NITA) examination registration support. Zawadi has had regular home and school visits, as well as counseling by the project counselor and social worker.