Needed Actions for Community Care and Development (NACC) through its Innovations in Primary Education Project (IPE) encourages mindset change through Targeted Outreach Communication (TOC) which shows videos depicting real life situations.
Needed Actions for Community Care and Development (NACC) through its Innovations in Primary Education Project (IPE) encourages mindset change through Targeted Outreach Communication (TOC) which shows videos depicting real life situations. NACC also initiated formulation of Girls Corners, a platform for girls in schools to share life skills. These two techniques have proven effective evident in the life of Patience Makonombera.
Patience Makonombera is a standard 8 students at Masongola 1 Primary school. She was found pregnant in 2022 when she was in standard 6 due to bad peer pressure. She dropped out of school to take care of the child but only for a short time, thanks to NACC’s interventions.
Makonombera recalled what they learnt at girls’ corner of the importance of education and abstinence. She quickly told her mother that she was willing to go back to school and start afresh when the child was only one month.
“I was shocked to hear her saying she wants to go back to school when her child was just one month old but she persisted saying she had realized she was on the wrong.” Said Sigele Daudi Funny, Makonombera’s mother.
“I thought of supporting her borrowing the lessons I learnt from Akandechere videos shown by NACC which clearly stated that it was possible for a girl to go back to school despite being pregnant” She added.
With support from the girls’ corner, Makonombera is back on track with improved performance.
“The teachers welcomed me back to school and warned me never to repeat my past mistakes. I joined standard 7 passed securing position 15 first term, then later position ten in the other two terms and now I am in standard 8.” Makonombela said.
Makonombera, was however was quick to point out how she is mocked by her peers but she is never moved.
“I tell my friends to stop mocking me but rather learn from my mistakes” she said.
Makonombera who dreams of becoming a doctor and wishes to be selected to Lisumbwi Secondary School says she restructured her life to make sure her dreams come true.
“I no longer have a boyfriend and I wrote a timetable which I strictly follow, its either I am home or I am at school, I no longer have time for nonsense” She added.