Keeping Girls in School: Syldina’s Story

At 22 years old, Syldina is a wife and a mother of two young children. She dropped out of school in the 9th grade when her parents became handicapped and her family was experiencing tough times financially. They could no longer afford to cover her tuition fees and other school-related expenses, so for the following two years she stayed at home, missing school.

Life became increasingly difficult as her and her husband raised two children with limited resources. Syldina talked with her husband about the possibility of her going back to school. She had heard about the Keeping Girls in School (KGS) program through a member of the Community Welfare Assistance Committee who approached her, following up on the offer letter she received to join KGS, and explained the benefits of the program for young women like her.

Syldina enrolled in KGS and joined the Katembula Youth Resource Center, a vocational training center, to learn tailoring. She chose tailoring because of her interest in fashion. As a mother and wife with competing responsibilities, she thought going to a vocational training center would be more practical than re-joining the formal education system.

Syldina is grateful to KGS for the support they have given her and encourages her peers who may qualify to enroll in the program so they can “get back to school and prepare for their future”. Syldina’s husband says he is happy and profoundly thankful to see his wife go back to school and build her skills so they can both strengthen their household’s economic security.

The Bantwana Initiative of World Education and regional affiliate Bantwana Zimbabwe, in close partnership with the Ministry of Education, piloted the KGS program in three districts.