Rise Young Womens Clubs program started two years ago, after consultations which included input from young women themselves. A panel of ten women from different communities gave input on activities and materials, and helped to choose the name. Soul City makes it a practice to take materials back to communities in order to sense check whether they will be effective for the target group.
When recruiting for a club, Soul City also identifies a somewhat older young woman (mid to late 20s) to be the ‘Youth Champion’ for the group. She acts as a mentor who though a bit older is not a parent-age figure.. still closer to being a peer for members of the club. Youth Champions are volunteers but receive a small stipend. Clubs are given a list of topics that they should discuss, for example:
• self esteem
• sexual reproductive health and rights
• HIV testing
• Careers and income generating skills
• How to apply to tertiary school programs
On the day of our visit a few other topics which came up were
• How to handle a situation where your boyfriend starts having a relationship on the side—a ‘side chick’ as the girls call them
• ‘Blessers’ i.e. men who give gifts or favors in exchange for sex. It’s fairly typical that a girl is sleeping with a blesser in order to have school fees or money for other needs her family cant afford
• Difficulties of talking to a parent about sex
• If you get pregnant, pros and cons of giving a child up for adoption
• Use of condoms- how to use/ when to use [notably many of the girls are only 14 years old]