The Mother’s Group at Boma Primary School is an exemplary Mother’s Group in Phalombe District. The ten members of the Mother’s Group members were selected by the communities based on them being positive role models and their dedication to promoting girls’ education. The Mother’s Group at Bona Primary School meet every Friday and provide a wide range of services within the school and the community.

In team meetings they discuss factors which deter girls and boys from school and devise possible strategies to overcome them. In school, they meet with pupils to discuss the importance of education and offer guidance and counselling on various aspects, such as expected behavior, hygiene and sanitation, HIV/AIDS and child rights. In the community, they identify girls and boys who have dropped out of school and work with them and their families to encourage them to return to education. They also encourage parents to become more involved in their child’s schooling, for example by looking through their exercise books and asking about school each day. In addition, they also handle issues concerning menstrual hygiene for girls at the school.

Girls’ attendance at Bona primary school used to be very low, and the school dropout rate for girls was high. This can be partly attributed to a lack of sanitary facilities, such as latrines with changing rooms for the girls, which deprived girls of a safe space to manage their hygiene during their periods. Upon noticing these challenges, the community, the chief, the Parent-Teachers Association and School Management Team (SMT) selected mothers from the community to be members of Bona Mother’s Group and requested the District Education Manager (DEM) for latrines with changing rooms for the girls, who in turn approached United Purpose for the construction of the latrines.

United Purpose constructed the latrines with menstrual hygiene management facilities for girls, requesting contribution of local materials such as bricks, quarry stones and sand. United Purpose also trained Bona Mother’s Group on menstrual hygiene issues and the maintenance of the menstrual hygiene management facilities.

“We were trained by United Purpose on menstrual hygiene, which has helped us to bring back girls to school” narrated Tryness Makina vice chair of Bona mother group. “At first girls were not using the facilities because of cultural beliefs as they were afraid that we could take the used [sanitary] pads to make charms because we burn the used pads” narrated Mercy Chamba, a member of Bona Mother’s Group.

To overcome this cultural belief, the Mother’s Group member responsible is always accompanied by at least two girls whenever they are burning the used pads to instill trust and dispel the myths for the girls using the facility. The efforts of the Mother’s Group and the construction of the menstrual hygiene management facilities has improved girl’s attendance and enrolment at the school, growing from 625 in 2015 to 726 in 2018.

For the Mother’s Group members to be recognized at the school, United Purpose purchased a uniform for the Mother’s Group as a way of motivating them as they do the job on a voluntary basis. “We are very grateful to United Purpose for providing us with uniforms these uniforms are helping us to be recognized in the communities and at school. Upon seeing the uniform parents are no longer reluctant for us to speak with their daughters” narrated Elizabeth Sambanya, chair of Bona Mother’s Group.