Keeping girls safe and learning during lockdown
Joya Parvin 18, is a VSO community volunteer from Parsa district, Nepal. In her role as a 'Big Sister', she looks after 13 'Little Sisters' in her community, who are at risk of dropping out of education and sometimes child marriage.
Joya's role involves visiting her Little Sisters and their families, providing mentoring and learning support whilst advocating for girls' education within vulnerable communities.
Rising coronavirus cases in Joya's community resulted in a strict lockdown being enforced. Despite this, Joya is still visiting four of her Little Sisters, providing essential support and information on the coronavirus to help keep families safe.
One of Joya's Little Sisters said: "I was very scared to hear that there are positive cases of COVID in my village; I thought I would die too. Big Sister Joya and community mobilisers frequently called me and my family, telling us not to panic and providing advice to keep ourselves healthy. I have been washing my hands more frequently and do not go out of the house."
One of the biggest challenges girls in this community are facing is hygiene, with menstrual products, soap and sanitiser being a luxury many families cannot afford. With the limited pharmacies running out of stock at the start of lockdown, marginalised girls have been left behind.
VSO has mobilised community volunteers like Joya to provide essential hygiene kits to girls in crisis. With the right information and supplies, girls like Joya's Little Sisters will be able to keep themselves safe from coronavirus.
We urgently need to reach more girls at risk.
Your donation could help us provide hygiene kits to rural communities struggling to keep safe and clean.