{"id":12314,"date":"2025-12-15T09:49:48","date_gmt":"2025-12-15T06:49:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/?p=12314"},"modified":"2025-12-15T10:00:38","modified_gmt":"2025-12-15T07:00:38","slug":"hairdressing-skills-from-rom-spark-maureens-mission-to-support-young-girls","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/?p=12314","title":{"rendered":"Hairdressing Skills from ROM Spark Maureen\u2019s Mission to Support Young Girls"},"content":{"rendered":"

Namitala Maureen, a young mother from Kitintale Zone 12, had her life take a new turn after joining the SHE SOARS project<\/a>\u00a0implemented by Reach Out Mbuya Community Health Initiative (ROM). Through life skills, SRH sessions,\u00a0 and vocational hairdressing training, Maureen gained confidence, and financial independence. Her journey highlights the
\ntransformative impact of community-based empowerment interventions for vulnerable young women, one of the key cores that align with ROM’s overall programming.<\/p>\n

Baseline Situation<\/strong>
\nMaureen\u00a0 birthed to her daughter in 2022. At that time, her partner was also facing financial difficulties, and they lived in a small rental house that cost only 50,000 shillings per month. She had no reliable source of income and lacked the practical skills to support herself or her child.
\nIn January 2024, Martha Namatovu, a Peer Educator, and Ms. Nansikombi, known as \u201cthe Nabakyala,\u201d<\/em> used a megaphone to mobilize young girls and women to join the free SHE SOARS vocational skills training, which offered skills and startup kits. She testified,<\/p>\n

\u201cWe began with life skills sessions that included Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) education, and we were also introduced to safe menstrual hygiene practices, including making of reusable sanitary pads.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"\"
(L) Maureen attending to a customer at her house. (R)She displays a certificate she acquired following completion of the SRH Course under the SHE SOARS Project.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Maureen was eventually enrolled in a six-month hairdressing course.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile we were being skilled, I started practicing by styling the hair of my village mates. By the third month into the program, I had already gained regular customers. This money helped me to afford by transport fares to the training venue in kinawataka,\u201d she shares.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Upon completing the course, Maureen received a starter kit with essential salon materials, including shampoo, a hand dryer, hair products, threads, rollers, combs, aprons, and hair gel. This support enabled her to kick-start her salon business and move toward financial independence.
\nShe started working, officially launching her home-based salon in October 2024. She also joined a Village Savings and Loan Association (VSLA) group, where she contributes 20,000 shillings
\nevery week.<\/p>\n

\u201cOn a good day like Easter this year, I earned 70,000 Ugandan shillings after plaiting three clients. On regular days, I usually make between 10,000 and 20,000 shillings. The good thing about salon work is that it doesn\u2019t require a lot of capital. I simply use or sell some of the starter
\nkit materials to the customers, like hair products and accessories, while I charge them for the labor,\u201d she explains.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Namitala Maureen, a young mother from Kitintale Zone 12, had her life take a new turn after joining the SHE SOARS project\u00a0implemented by Reach Out Mbuya Community Health Initiative (ROM). Through life skills, SRH sessions,\u00a0 and vocational hairdressing training, Maureen gained confidence, and financial independence. Her journey highlights the transformative impact of community-based empowerment interventions […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":12315,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[1,3],"tags":[104],"class_list":["post-12314","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog","category-news","tag-blogs"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12314","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=12314"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12314\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12323,"href":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12314\/revisions\/12323"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/12315"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=12314"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=12314"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reachoutmbuya.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=12314"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}