*Simbisai resisted the pressure from her community to get married at the age of 18 years. Her parents divorced and went separate ways leaving her to take care of her two siblings. She could not imagine herself being a mother at her age, she had experienced Gender Based Violence at a very young age, and she had also witnessed her parents’ nasty divorce.
“Life changed after my parents’ divorce. I had to drop out of school to fend for my siblings. My peers and community members came with different solutions to my problems. The majority of them tried to convince me to get married to one divorcee in the neighbourhood. I refused!”
Well-wishers sometimes assisted Simbisai and her siblings with food but most of the time they went to bed with empty stomachs. The temporary jobs she got did not pay much as some people took advantage of her desperate situation. One day as she was doing menial jobs in the neighbourhood, she met her former school mate who advised her of the DREAMS project.
“I could not believe what she was telling me, it sounded too good to be true. The next day I met the DREAMS project Coordinator who was moved by my enthusiasm to transform my life. Joining the DREAMS project is the best thing that ever happened to my life. I met my peers who were as determined as I was and we agreed that regardless of our backgrounds, we were going to make it in life.”
The club sessions proved to be what Simbisai wanted for her life to take a new turn. She was encouraged by the way her peers freely shared their stories, encouraging each other. Her mental health also improved as she got access to counselling services. She was also referred to other DREAMS partners who assisted her with HIV Testing Services and information on family planning.
The ISALS training equipped her economically through business management knowledge and start up money for her economic projects. Simbisai started buying and selling second hand clothes accepting all forms of payment including barter trading with grains and small livestock. These provided food to her family.
Simbisai later enrolled into entrepreneurship training which sharpened her business management skills. As she was expanding her business, she also joined other AGYW to sew face masks, sanitary pads and door mats for sale in the community. Today, Simbisai has enough money to take care of her siblings, including paying their school fees. She is the envy of her peers some who thought only early marriage would solve her challenges.
The DREAMS project came just at the right time and Simbisai never regrets standing firm to her beliefs. “I always believed that if you wait patiently for your day, it will come. I am happy that I am a good example to my community, and I am a source of inspiration for my peers and siblings.”
*Not real name