Adapted from a report by Becky, who serves in West Africa with Alliance CAMA Services (a.k.a. Compassion and Mercy Associates)
In 2014, our CAMA team started Hands of Honor in partnership with a local Alliance church to aid in the plight of West Africa’s female child laborers.
Since we also wanted to create awareness about challenging issues impacting the region’s teen girls and advocate for change here, our local Hands of Honor staff sponsored a citywide campaign for teen girls of all faiths. On February 3, more than 200 girls gathered for the Hands of Honor–sponsored training.
Taboo Topics Covered
Mme N’Diaye Hawa Tessougue, the president for women in the Association of Evangelical Churches in Mali, was the invited keynote speaker. She travels extensively throughout West Africa, speaking at youth events, bravely focusing on topics that are often culturally taboo.
Hawa jumped right in and told the girls that they’d be talking about sex. That sure got a lot of giggles! She then shared a framework for a biblical perspective on the subject, before reporting a sobering statistic about promiscuity in the local community.
Since January 1 of this year, 53 cases of unplanned pregnancies have been documented—most of them among girls averaging 15 years of age. That shocking statistic was greeted with an audible gasp from everyone; it further illustrated the dire need for the training.
Most Impactful Moment
Hawa did not shy away from talking about additional challenging topics—incest, pornography, pedophilia, homosexuality, and violence against women. All were addressed in culturally sensitive ways. She so captured the girls’ attention that no one wanted to break for lunch!
The most impactful moment of the day came when we discussed the prevalence of violence against women here. Hawa asked if anyone was courageous enough to share her story.
More than a dozen girls stood and shared about times that they or a friend had been put in vulnerable situations or even assaulted because of living with extended family members, employers who propositioned them, or school teachers who expected favors in exchange for a passing grade.
One girl was so overcome with weeping when sharing her story that she couldn’t continue. It was a healing moment. We all wept with her as Hawa wrapped her arms around this young girl, reassuring her with her words, “We hear your story. We hear your story.”
During the afternoon sessions, the girls were given time to pose questions to invited health professionals. Several inquiries pertained to a training given earlier in the day on female genital mutilation, a cultural practice that affects millions of African girls and women.
“How can we stop this from happening?” the girls implored. Their question gives us hope that the generation represented in the room will be the last to endure the mutilation of their bodies.
A Spirit-Filled Day
Every difficult issue discussed during the campaign was eclipsed by the day’s themes of grace and forgiveness.
At one point, Hawa took a crisp bill from her purse and told the girls it represented them before they’d made poor moral choices or had lost their innocence because of circumstances out of their control. She proceeded to crumple up the bill and step on it.
She then held up the soiled bill and asked, “It may not look the same, but does it not still have the same value?” She assured the girls of their worth, despite anything in their past, and challenged them not to look behind but face forward on a new path.
It was a beautiful, Spirit-filled day that ended with a time of corporate prayer and repentance.
Although this event made only a small dent in addressing the realities girls face in West Africa, it was a start. I am so thankful we provided a safe place for the girls’ voices to be heard and important issues that impact their lives were addressed!
With the Holy Spirit’s enabling, our prayer is to reach more vulnerable girls in this region.
Our message is that the local church can be a safe place to be heard and for them to find value and worth through a relationship with our loving Heavenly Father.
Learn More
Check out CAMA’s featured projects, including Hands of Honor.