WAVES-SL HOLDS INCEPTION MEETING IN BENDUMA, BAGBWE CHIEFDOM, BO DISTRICT.

Giving a brief over view of the project, Momoh B.S. Lukullay, Programme Manager WAVES-SL informed that WAVES has a unique culture of introducing new projects to community stakeholders before implementations start and that the meeting was held in the same vein to introduce the ‘prevention of FGM/C in Sierra Leone project and the assigned Project Officer.

For his part, M&E Officer, Mohamed Ngaujia, gave a brief background of BMZ and Action Medeor, mentioning that BMZ, a government institution responsible for international cooperation donated the funds through Action Medeor, a German based medical aid organization who has had good working relationship with WAVES-SL. He further explained the project methodologies and activities to the audience including the establishment of safe spaces in all the communities.

Speaking on behalf of the Paramount Chief of Bagbwe Chiefdom, Sheku Kamara applauded WAVES-SL for thinking about their

community for the development of the people especially the girls.

He revealed the practice of FGM is one of the things responsible for the level of poverty in his community coupled with the health consequences associated with the practice.

” _this is the right step in the right direction to alleviate the poverty of the chiefdom; moreso promoting education of their children, especially the girl child, brings about development_ ” Sheku said.

He promised to pass on the message from the inception meeting to his people for their fullest corporation and participation in the program whilst pledging to work with the organization for the successful implementation of the project.

Junisa Kamara of R.C Bali said that the practice of FGM often affects the teaching and the operations of the school especially immediately after each vacation as the girls are often initiated into the secret society during that time whilst other children are said to be held back by their parents for fear that their kids might be whisked off to the secret society.

He revealed that the practice of FGM and teenage pregnancy are major barriers to the education of children and especially the development of girls in the chiefdom.

Similar statements were made by Kawonde Baimba, School leader at SLC Njala Kendima and other teachers present at the meeting.

Musu Rogers, a pupil of Bagbwe Junior Secondary School thanked and appreciated WAVES-SL for the program and expressed the hope that the parents and community people will buy-in to the messages of the meeting so that the project objectives will be achieved.

” _We want to become educated women and we need our parents and teachers to support our education and not to force us into FGM”_ said Musu.