{"id":7781,"date":"2025-04-14T13:03:25","date_gmt":"2025-04-14T13:03:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gracamacheltrust.org\/?p=7781"},"modified":"2026-01-23T01:44:12","modified_gmt":"2026-01-22T23:44:12","slug":"building-bold-futures-the-graca-machel-trust-launches-a-new-nest-in-malawi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/test.gbstudio.co.za\/gmt\/featured\/building-bold-futures-the-graca-machel-trust-launches-a-new-nest-in-malawi\/","title":{"rendered":"Pan African Adolescent Girls’ Movement Malawi Nest ignites leadership for adolescent girls"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

In many parts of Africa, adolescent girls still face significant barriers\u2014limited access to health services, inadequate education, and social stigma. These challenges don\u2019t just hinder their personal growth \u2013 they can silence potential leaders and changemakers. But what if, instead of being held back, these girls were equipped and supported to lead? That\u2019s the goal of the Gra\u00e7a Machel Trust, to be achieved one Nest<\/em> at a time.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

A Nest is a peer-led platform formed by groups of adolescent girls, inspired by the metaphor of high-flying Eagles.<\/em> Supported by partner organisations and led by older peers or “big sisters,” Nests bring together girls with shared interests. As these groups grow and the girls’ confidence and leadership develop, the Nests become vehicles for community advocacy, challenging structural barriers and driving change.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"\"

Adolescent girls actively engage in interactive sessions facilitated by peer “Eagles,” developing confidence, leadership skills, and amplifying their voices through the Malawi Nest initiative.<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n

\n

In March 2025, the Trust launched a new Nest in Malawi, marking another significant step forward in the Pan-African Adolescent Girls’ Movement. In partnership with the Campaign for Adolescent Health Education, Sanitation, and Hygiene (CAHESH), this initiative ensures adolescent girls\u2014especially those with disabilities\u2014gain essential access to education, health resources, and leadership training.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

In Malawi, as in many countries across the continent, young girls often face challenges mentioned earlier and limited leadership opportunities. For girls with disabilities, these challenges are even more acute.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"\"

Girls collaboratively engage in creative group activities, crafting educational materials to address key issues like teenage pregnancy through the Malawi Nest initiative.<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n

\n

This is where the Pan-African Adolescent Girls’ Movement \u00a0makes a difference. By creating safe, supportive spaces led by young facilitators known as \u201cEagles,\u201d the programme teaches girls to firstly understand themselves, understand how they can interact with their elders and communities and how to advocate for issues that affect them. These spaces offer more than education\u2014they ignite transformation.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Partnerships that drive change<\/b><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Adolescent girls in Malawi face a range of interlinked challenges that hinder their growth and well-being. These include limited access to education\u2014especially in rural areas\u2014due to long distances, household responsibilities, and inadequate menstrual hygiene resources. Harmful cultural norms and poverty further compound the issue, leading to early marriages, teenage pregnancies, and gender-based violence. Many girls lack safe spaces to voice their rights and access to mentors or role models, resulting in low self-esteem and limited aspirations.<\/p>\n

MacDonald D. Kaluwa, Executive Director of CAHESH, shared his thoughts on the partnership with the Gra\u00e7a Machel Trust, describing it as a transformative initiative for girls in Malawi. He said,\u00a0\u201cThis project will bridge the gap in youth development by supporting adolescent girls in developing their confidence, agency and leadership skills. This enable \u00a0them to actively participate in matters that affect their wellbeing. It will also create an environment for peer support, learning, and accessing critical resources for sustained change.\u201d <\/em>He added that the partnership will also open doors to educational and economic inclusion initiatives, enabling girls to make informed decisions, advocate for their rights, and influence policy reforms in Malawi.<\/p>\n

Through its collaboration with CAHESH, the Trust works closely with local communities and networks to ensure its programmes reflect the lived experiences of the girls involved. By addressing gaps in education and hygiene, they\u2019re helping build scalable, community-driven solutions that create lasting impact.<\/p>\n

“We are proud to be working with committed local implementing partners \u00a0in 7 countries, and have been able to reach over 3 900 adolescent girls. We are excite and that we are growing and will be reaching more young women on the continent this year” said Dalree de Lange, Senior Programme Officer at GMT.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"

Joyful participants and facilitators celebrate the launch of the Malawi Nest, showcasing the vibrant energy and community spirit at the heart of the Pan-African Adolescent Girls Movement.<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In many parts of Africa, adolescent girls still face significant […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7784,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"_rtcl_gb_attr":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[742,119,4,81],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7781","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blogs","category-childrens-ryt-highlight","category-featured","category-highlight"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.gbstudio.co.za\/gmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7781","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.gbstudio.co.za\/gmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.gbstudio.co.za\/gmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.gbstudio.co.za\/gmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.gbstudio.co.za\/gmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7781"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/test.gbstudio.co.za\/gmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7781\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.gbstudio.co.za\/gmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7784"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.gbstudio.co.za\/gmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7781"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.gbstudio.co.za\/gmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7781"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.gbstudio.co.za\/gmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7781"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}