Senase Project

Mission: to empower students through technical training, sanitary supplies, and health education

Project’s Goals

  1. Build a sustainable, self-funded program

  2. Have a paid sewing class that has >30 participants at SAS and >20 at government school

  3. Give monthly health education classes to grades 4+, with a focus on reproductive justice

  4. Have menstrual hygiene products accessible to students in need

  5. Have adequate sanitation to care for menstrual products

  6. Involve the boys in the community to decrease period stigma

  7. Discourage sexual activity and risky sex practices in students

What We Did

Thanks to your generous contributions, our team was able to purchase 270 kits from Days for Girls. The organization’s resource personnel came to the village for four days and taught health education classes to 162 students at The Semanhyia American School. Local teachers observed these sessions over the four days they took place. 

  • Sixteen teachers from two local schools were trained on the health curriculum. Two school nurses also attended the training, learned about reusable pads, and provided their own expertise. Both schools were supplied with teaching aids like posters, diagrams, and manuals. 

  • This program carried over to the Senase R/C Primary Government School. There, teachers taught their own students using the Days for Girls curriculum and teaching aids and distributed the remaining kits. Across the two schools, we reached 270 girls through menstrual kits and health education. A total of 550 students (girls and boys) will receive health education. 

  • We have built one borehole at The Semanhyia American School and plan to build a second at Senase R/C Primary in October 2022. 

The local community is also supportive of our efforts. We hosted a parents’ informational session, where local teachers and parents discussed menstrual poverty in the community, how girls cope, and the benefits of reusable pads. Mothers especially are very happy with the project. The headmaster himself complimented the program and reported he has received many calls thanking us for our efforts. 

Thanks to your continued support, we believe this program is sustainable long-term. We are also soliciting four teachers at the Semanhyia American School to continue this project. Each has been assigned a main project, such as introducing a sewing class or introducing a long-term health curriculum.

Let’s Look at the Data

“I am 9 years old. If I haven't started my period yet, and I’m having sex, when I start menstruating when I turn 11, will I become pregnant?”

This was a question that was asked when we taught health education classes by a fourth grade student. A similar version of this question was asked by two other students. There was debate whether these questions were asked out of curiosity or were a reflection of their activities. Because of this, we decided to ask the students directly in an anonymous survey.  

We distributed a survey to 441 students at both schools to gauge sexual activities. The key findings from this report are shared below and will inform what future health curriculum and health resources are needed. 

Males

Based on the data, most activities around sex start in the 5th grade. So the data suggest starting sexual education in the 4th grade would be important for boys. 

  • 25% have sex

  • 20% masturbate - only 1-2 per grade starting at grade 5

  • 62% use porn

  • Pulling out is the most common use of precautions at 13% 

  • On average sex starts in the 5th grade 

  • On average Masturbation starts in the 5th grade 

  • On average using of porn starts in the 6th grade 

Female

Based on the data, most activities around sex start in the 4th grade. So the data sugest starting sexual education in the 3rd grade would be important for girls. 

  • 17% have sex 

  • 11% masturbate 

  • 62% use porn 

  • Counting days is the most common use of precautions at 20%

  • On average sex starts in the 4th grade - typicaly have 2-3 more partners then boys

  • On average Masturbation starts in the 4th grade 

  • On average using of porn starts in the 4th grade 

Stories from Senase

*Names have been changed and no photos were taken in order to protect the girls’ privacy. Interviews were conducted with permission from these students, their parents, their teachers, and their school administrators. This article has been reviewed by the local community members for accuracy and tone.

  • Abina*

    is a thirteen-year-old girl living in Senase, Ghana. During the day, she goes to school; she’s in grade seven. After school, she sometimes spends time with an older boy, who has a job and earns money. Her parents know of him as her boyfriend. They have sex. She takes birth control pills to protect herself against pregnancy, but the pills are expensive.

    The boy gives Abina gifts: a pair of slippers, sometimes food, sometimes money. She uses this money to buy things to eat and menstrual pads. Pads are a luxury in Senase, and she might not have access to them if it weren’t for the money she’s given.

    Abina says that sex was painful for her at first, though it’s not anymore. She doesn’t really enjoy it, and she doesn’t particularly want to. She frequently comes up with excuses for why she can’t have sex. She says that she would not keep seeing the boy if it weren’t for the presents and the money that allows her to buy pads.

    No one should ever have to engage in sexual behaviors for access to materials that should be a right for everyone. At the Jova Foundation, we hope to assist the community of Senase as they work to improve access to menstrual pads and build bodily autonomy for girls.

  • Jennifer*

    a fourteen-year-old, lives in Senase, Ghana. About a year ago, she began to notice unusual vaginal discharge, accompanied by a strange smell. At first she thought it might be because she wasn’t bathing enough, but even after bathing at least twice a day, her issue has persisted. When she asked her mother, her mother suggested it may have been caused by eating too many sugary foods.

    Jennifer has been living with this condition for an entire year. Despite her active concerns, she hasn’t yet been to see a doctor or gotten any medication to address it. She thinks that because she hasn’t had sex, her discharge is not a medical issue but rather something she needs to deal with on her own.

    Education about puberty and sex is limited in her school, so Jennifer doesn’t have much information about vaginal health or what to do when she notices unusual symptoms. For now, she’s just living with the discharge and the discomfort of not knowing what is happening in her body.

    Girls and women, like Jennifer, should not have to face health issues due to insufficient knowledge about their own bodies. Untreated vaginal infections can have long term consequences, and women can feel shameful and isolated due to their symptoms.

    Starting September 2022, The Jova Foundation will implement a monthly health education curriculum taught by local teachers using evidence-based practices to supplement the community’s traditional medicine. Along with students, parents will also attend workshops once per school term in order to learn about a relevant health topic.

    We also aim to strengthen our partnership with the Ghanaian Health Service. This partnership will ensure that school nurses have the resources to provide reproductive health services and will allow the Health Service to act as a neutral third party that monitors the Jova Foundation program’s efficiency and effects on health outcomes.

Get Involved

Our next steps include developing a long-term health curriculum, creating a sewing program, and building boreholes, clotheslines, and bathrooms.

Your contributions make our program’s progress possible. You have brought us a step closer to our goal of bettering the lives of the girls in the village. Thank you for your past, present, and future support of this endeavor.

For a detailed report of our spending and projected expenses, please reach out, and we will be happy to share.