Stories from Empowered Women

This is a book of real life stories told by women at the Hawkers Market Girls Centre (HMGC). In this book, you'll get a glimpse of the lives, the experiences and the transformations that have led them to this moment.

The HMGC: What if the girls and women of this world were all born empowered; the world could be the best place to live in, since empowering a woman is empowering the family and society. The Problem: This project is addressing the existent socio- cultural barriers, low literacy levels among young women, the care burden on young women, and harmful traditional practices. According to The World Bank Report on Kenya, absolute poverty is higher among women than men, at 50% for women and 46.2% for men.

The Solution: The Hawkers Market Girls Centre recognises the need for girls and young women to be empowered with skills, knowledge, and information in order to improve their lives and facilitate sustainable development in their communities. The centre acts like a home away from home whereby it provides safe drinking water, free food and free non-formal, informal and formal education. Through the skills and knowledge gained, young women are engaged in economic empowerment opportunities. Here, by producing items for sale, they can earn an income, get an education, and make informed life choices for themselves and their families.