By Keely Bicknell | Fundraising & Communications Officer
Dear friends and supporters,
The lives of girls and young women in Kenya continue to be uplifted and championed by your generosity! We’re so excited to share the successes of the past few months at our Seed of Hope training centres, that your support has made possible.
Last year, we enrolled 637 girls and young women from marginalised communities into Seed of Hope, across our three centres. Of these, 162 were young mothers.
These girls joined Seed of Hope because the cycle of poverty meant they were unable to access or complete their education, effectively locking them out of safe, meaningful employment and leaving them vulnerable to exploitation and gender-based violence. Instead, each of these 637 girls benefited from our free training, free lunches, counseling, life skills training, and free learning materials.
At the end of January 2025, these incredible young women, currently part way through their internships, enjoyed their graduation ceremonies, proudly wearing their gowns and mortarboards in front of their families and friends. Each girl and young woman that graduated has been equipped with the skills and self-esteem needed to build their own exciting, safe futures!
Take a look at the snaps of the epic fashion show put on by Fashion and Fabric Design Nairobi graduates. You can tell by the incredible quality of the outfits on display (photos below) the level of skill young women graduate their Seed of Hope courses with, whatever they choose to study.
One graduating young mother shared: “I am deeply grateful to Seed of Hope for providing me with the opportunity that has changed the trajectory of my life for the better”.
Amongst the graduates was Yvonne, one of the two pioneering girls that has just graduated their Seed of Hope Kariti Electrical Wiring and Installation (EWI) course! Yvonne (pictured wearing the mortarboard in the photo with her fellow female EWI classmate) lives with her grandmother and had to drop out of secondary school when the money for fees dried up. She came to SoH and chose to study Electrical Wiring, a course traditionally dominated by boys and young men. She absolutely thrived in her learning, and has just graduated with the skills to set up her own business, doing things like installing CCTV and wiring doorbells! We couldn't be prouder of these two trail-blazing young women!
Introducing Mary, recent Hair & Beauty graduate from Seed of Hope Kariti. Incredibly, Mary became pregnant during her studies, but did not drop out.
With support from the team at Seed of Hope, she continued her classes and then sat (and passed!) her exams while heavily pregnant. Now a proud mother, Mary wants to set up her own salon, so she can support herself and her family.
Finally, we’re proud to share that, after becoming an accredited NITA (National Industrial Training Authority) exam centre at the end of 2024, 161Seed of Hope students chose to sit a NITA exam on top of their Seed of Hope exam in December 2024. We are blown away that 17% were graded First Class (i.e. their mark was 83% or higher!) and 78% were graded Pass!
Gaining a formal qualification like this, on top of their Seed of Hope skills and qualification, is a very strong step towards a successful future, with no limits for these inspiring young women!
Thank you for believing in these girls - we are so grateful for your support!
With love and gratitude,
Keely and the team
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