SHELEARNS is a programme driven by young women who want to be meaningfully involved in making change. The primary objective is to strengthen the capacities of adolescent girls and young women on feminist research skills, and SRHR and human rights advocacy in their own countries and communities. The project engages a wide network of primarily young women-led organisations and activists, bringing them together to advance women’s rights and health and to identify and communicate key advocacy opportunities. ATHENA country focal points lead the advocacy at community level in their countries. They map the needs and concerns of adolescent girls and young women in their diversity and mobilise them to create a well-connected movement. They provide positive modelling, ongoing mentorship, and encourage dialogue and learning in a safe space.
The SHELEARNS toolkit was developed collaboratively by ARASA and ATHENA to contribute to and strengthen sexual and reproductive health rights (SRHR) advocacy for adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) in Eastern and Southern Africa.
At the core of the toolkit and the #SheLearns programme is intersectional feminism that emphasises collaboration and a non-hierarchical environment. The toolkit was therefore developed with and for adolescent girls and young women in their diversity, who will use it for their various advocacy projects within their communities.
The toolkit aims to support the production of Pan-African feminist knowledge whilst strengthening the capacities of young African feminist movements through a resource that is easy to understand and use. This toolkit provides a guide on how to become (and improve on being) a champion for human rights in many ways. The toolkit additionally provides information, tips and tricks on how young feminists can influence laws, address social and gender norms such as religious and cultural practices, and social norms through various advocacy strategies. It has been designed for various audiences and stakeholders but primarily young African feminists, especially those mobilising, who seek to mobilise their peers, build movements to influence and shape policies on matters of SRHR advocacy and HIV prevention, care and treatment advocacy as it relates to AGYW in their diversity in Africa, with a view of creating a more inclusive, equitable and just world for girls, young women and gender diverse adolescents.