By 2018, Sawa World and four partner organizations will be teaching local and entrepreneurial skills to over 15,500 vulnerable girls in six Ugandan districts as part of the DREAMS Innovation Challenge (Determined, Resilient, Empowered, AIDS-Free, Mentored, and Safe women). By offering smart, efficient solutions to factors that increase the risk of HIV, Sawa World was selected from over 800 competing organizations.
A wealth of project ideas was brainstormed in the recent two-day planning and strategizing session amongst Sawa World’s official DREAM Challenge partners at the Solution Centre. Poverty, gender inequality, unemployment, lack of education, and sexual violence are some of the huge barriers young women face in the fight against contracting AIDS.
The specific Sawa World Solutions(simple local skills to self-employment) will be determined through a needs assessment and Sawa World Sparks (founders of local solutions) will travel to communities to conduct trainings with adolescent girls and young women most at risk for HIV. Rapid implementation which demonstrates visible impact with potential for long-lasting change is critical to the success of the two-year project. Scoping activities will start later this year with the project in full swing by 2017.
