When we talk of re-admission of girls who dropped out of school due to pregnancy, the story of Amina Kaisi stands out.
When we talk of re-admission of girls who dropped out of school due to pregnancy, the story of Amina Kaisi stands out. Amina Kaisi is a 16-year-old girl who hails from Traditional Authority(TA) Jalasi, Sumaili village, Mangochi District. She got pregnant while in standard five but has now been selected to Majuni secondary school and here is her interesting story.
While in standard five, Kaisi fell victim of bad influence and got pregnant leading to her dropout.
I had friends who had boyfriends and they encouraged me to get one for myself too
Kaisi recalls
My mother used to warn and advise me about bad friends and consequences of indulging in sexual activities at a tender age but I did not listen to her till I became pregnant,”
She added.
Communication (TOC) videos utilized the lessons learnt from the videos and played a very supportive role despite her daughter’s misfortune by advising her never to think of marriage because she was too young.
“After watching Akandechere video form NACC, I learnt the importance of education and the role parents play. In the drama, I saw a girl, Akandechere who was well supported by her parents and was later educated and became successful unlike her peer(Patuma) who failed to make it due to her sexual practices and poor parental direction”.
She explained.
“Since then, I have always wanted my Amina to be like Akandechere who made it in life through education and supported his mother unlike Patuma who was just getting one pregnancy after another”.
She added.
Concurring with Kaisi’s mother was Loyce Chapepa a Mother Support Group Chair who was trained by NACC to play an advisory role to girls and encourage them to stick to their education.
“When I heard of her pregnancy and drop out, I quickly recalled how NACC trained us to support such girls and I followed her up. I advised her that her pregnancy was not the end of her journey but that she could always go back to school and she agreed.”
Chapepa explained.
3 months after giving birth, Kaisi went back to school while her mother took care of the baby. She would also bring the baby to school for breastfeeding. The journey was no so easy for Kaisi as she had to endure mocking from her fellow students and community members for breastfeeding while in school. Despite the hardship of balancing the roles of motherhood and student, Kaisi continued her education until she wrote her Primary School Leaving Certificate Examinations (PLSCE) in 2024. Kaisi who dreams of becoming a doctor has now been selected to Majuni Secondary School.
Thanks to Needed Actions for Community Care and Development (NACC) for the skills they taught us because those are the ones I used while encouraging Amina and other girls in similar situations
added Chapepa.