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The RAEDD is one of the 11 structures selected, out of a total of 330 requests, by the PISCCA fund (innovative projects of civil societies and coalitions of actors) of the Embassy of France in Niger in 2022.

Project objective and expected results

In the department of Dogondoutchi, school dropout is high and mainly affects girls.
The reasons are many and concern early marriage, unwanted early pregnancies, geographical remoteness, poverty and the inadequacy of the school system. Their exclusion or abandonment of their schooling is also the consequence of high absenteeism linked to their difficulty in managing their menstrual hygiene and their sexual health, a subject that is still taboo, leaving young girls at a loss when faced with their problems as teenagers.

The objective of this project is to strengthen the retention in school of secondary school girls from 16 rural CEGs in the department of Dogondoutchi.

More precisely

  • Train for each college four mother educators who will be intermediaries with young college girls to help them with their teenage problems.
  • Reinforce the hygiene and safety of middle school students, in particular allowing middle school girls not to be handicapped by menstruation. 2,550 schoolgirls will be educated on the management of menstrual hygiene, early marriage and the avoidance of unwanted pregnancies. Latrines and hand-washing facilities will be functional and will provide the necessary security.
  • Improve the knowledge of middle school students about their health and their rights as teenagers. Colleges are provided with brochures “My health and my rights as adolescents” and teachers are trained in the use of the brochure.

Project activities

The action takes place in 16 rural colleges in the 6 municipalities of the department of Dogondoutchi, Dosso Region

  • Commune of Dankassari: in the villages of Goubey, Dankassari, Bawada Guida, Bawada Dagi
  • Commune of Dogondoutchi: in the villages of Togone, Rigia Samna, Kouka Bakoye, Kalgo - Commune of Dogonkiria: in the villages of Issakitchi, Bougou • Municipality of Kiéché: in the village of Rey Rey
  • Commune of Matankari: in the villages of Bagagi, Salga, Matankari
  • Commune of Soucoucoutane: in the villages of Doubalma, Kourouroube Dakaou.

The following activities are planned

  • Training of mother educators in Dogondoutchi who will serve as intermediaries to advise adolescents. Lasting 2 days, this training will cover subjects relating to menstrual hygiene, the prevention of pregnancies, the prevention of early marriages and unwanted pregnancies, what to do in the event of pregnancy, the prevention of sexual harassment , and the speeches to be made towards young girls and boys. It will be led by the monitoring/evaluation manager of the organization RAEDD, the person in charge of the education of girls from the secondary inspection of the department of Doutchi. and the reproductive health officer of the Dogondoutchi health district.
  • An awareness caravan on the management of menstrual hygiene, contraception, early marriage and unwanted pregnancies. It will be organized in each of the 16 colleges of the project and led by the 4 relays trained, the health focal point, the community focal point, a RAEDD executive and the person in charge of the schooling of girls from the Dogondoutchi inspection who will interventions, followed by discussions.
  • An endowment of 2,550 girls from the 16 rural colleges of Dogondoutchi with menstrual hygiene kits consisting of 4 panties, 4 sanitary napkins and a bag provided by the CSO Kijima Kinaja.
  • Monitoring the proper use of latrines already built by RAEDD, particularly in relation to menstruation problems. It will be ensured, during the planned visits, in collaboration with the staff of the educational establishments and the members of the COGES. This monitoring will also concern compliance with the hygiene rules to be observed: cleaning, installation of hand washing devices and soap.
  • Reinforcement of college students’ knowledge of their health and their rights as teenagers. The brochure “My health and my rights as a teenager, what I need to know” will be distributed in the 16 project colleges, each of which will have 30 booklets in its library. Students and teachers can consult it. Management will be entrusted to the school administration.
  • Training in the use of the brochure for the 16 teachers of life and earth sciences and the 16 teachers of family education from the project colleges, as well as the 16 agents of the health structures attached to these colleges.

The project is planned for a period of 6 months, between November 2022 and April 2023.

Co-funding comes from AECIN and AESCD as well as from he Management Committees of the establishments concerned.