Josephine, 18, Kenya

Basic need(s):

Food, Education

Project:

"NJAA MARUFUKU PROJECT"

A young mother herself, Josephine's "NJAA MARUFUKU PROJECT" ("eradicating hunger" in Swahili) works to help young mothers and other less fortunate girls—the uneducated, those with disabilities, commercial sex workers or young women infected with HIV/AIDS—generate income and improve their nutritional standards through entrepreneurial and agricultural skills. Josephine and other young mothers raise chickens for eggs and cultivate vegetables, receiving free vegetables and five eggs each week. The remaining food is sold at market. The generated income is then divided among the girls. This project has successfully improved the nutritional and economic standards of the participating teenage mothers and their children. She hopes to expand her project to empower even more adolescent girls socially and economically so they can make informed decisions and be independent. Josephine wants to be an international advocate for women and children's rights, as well as a voice for the world's marginalized citizens.

Photo: Benjamin Quinto