Covid-19 induced lockdowns affected the education sector, in 2020 the Ugandan government closed schools leading to a worrying spike in child and teenage pregnancies, especially in the poorer rural areas. This added to a problem that existed even before the pandemic, despite laws against underage sex.

Dr. Jotham Musinguzi, Director-General of Uganda’s National Population Council, while speaking at UNFPA’s flagship State of World Population report says   The teen pregnancy rate is high and rising – more than 30,000 teenage girls became pregnant each month in 2021 (over 1,000 daily), including about 250 children under 15 – mostly due to sexual abuse or coercion.

Extreme income inequalities exist, with some households living in abject poverty. Testimonies by most ofthe girls give grim accounts of how they were lured into sex in return for money, food and sanitary pads their parents or guardians could not afford to buy them.

In Uganda, girls who fall pregnant often drop out of school, as government guidance requires them to withdraw from school when they are three months pregnant until six months after giving birth. Many of them struggle to return to school but meet barriers like social stigma, lack of childcare or financial support.

Most girls who get pregnant don’t get a second chance at education, hence the need for an education re-entry programme like one provided by Wells of Hope .

The Law

Uganda law criminalises sexual intercourse between men and girls below 18 years as an offence of defilement and carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment for the culprits

SO what happens is that some men are arrested and some ran away to escape arrest, while others secretly negotiate with the family for the girl to be married off young!

Intervention

Education

Wells of Hope is helping these teen moms ages 13-19 . We are providing them an opportunity to continue with their education using Virtual means, that means they can study from home using pre-recorded Video Lessons and zoom, and a few face to face session in an environment free from stigma or being judged. Our target is the girls whom the father of their babies were imprisoned, (The Babies are children with a father in-prison ) although we are leaving it open to others as well, who maybe the men responsible ran away for fear of being arrested.

Many girls have dreams to be doctors or engineers, so these dreams should not be terminated! Hope was rejuvenated, and this is LOVE in Action what we believe in at Wells of Hope! Join us, we welcome every support! Currently, we have 86 girls in need of educational support. You can sponsor a girl or donate scholastic materials and other needs!

OTHER Services

  • Wells of Hope is providing these girls with counselling!
  • We offer training and education in childbirth, labor and delivery, parenting skills.
  • We try to do whatever we think is helpful to them!

DONATE

Choose from the following of how you can donate:

  1. You can donate by check by mailing a check in the names of Breaking Chains International to Breaking Chains International P.O. Box 2128 Auburndale, FL 33823. Kindly don’t forget to Put Wells of Hope Ministries in the Memo.
  2. Go to http://breakingchainsint.org/donate/
  • Choose to make a donation  and chose other to put any amount if not listed.
  • Click I would like to designate this donation to a specific fund Designated Fund:
  • In the drop down menu choose WELLS OF HOPE

For your convenience it is not necessary to create a PayPal account when donating to BCI, Inc. Please on next page click continue as a guest without registering. Thank you for your donation.

Other MEANS OF SENDING YOUR DONATION:

  1. TELEGRAPHIC TRANSFER ( WIRE ): You can send money by Telegraphic transfer click here for the wire information
  2. Western Union & Money Gram: You can also send us funds using Western Union or Money gram, Kindly ask us for the details.
  3. SEND WAVE MOBILE MONEY: You can also send using Sendwave appon your phone instantly , from The US, UK and Canada . Download app on your phone and send to Wells of Hope Mobile Money number +256774851251 . Please send us a message by email before and after to let us know that you are sending, so that we can confirm immediately. You can send any amount.
  4. MOBILE MONEY: Mobile telephone networks in east Africa have made it much easier to transfer funds. All you have to do is to visit one of their Mobile Money outlets and tell them you want to send money using your mobile phone. Ask the Mobile Money shop operators to assist you in sending us your Donations to +256774851251.