Education

Unemployment among young women creates many challenges. It reduces family income, and makes it harder for these women to build a better future or even contribute to the country’s development. Without jobs, many young women struggle to support themselves, increasing their risk of exploitation or being forced into early marriage. This also widens the gap between men and women and holds the country back from achieving fair and sustainable growth.

At 19, Mariama, is defying these odds by continuing her studies while learning the trade of a seamstress. In her hometown of Jojoima, most girls her age are either getting married early or dropping out of school to do hard work. But she is doing everything she can to succeed. She’s working hard and making the most of every opportunity. With how things are changing in the world, one job is often not enough to support a family. That’s why she also has a small side business to help her manage life’s challenges.

ChildFund, through N’domakeh Federation, introduced a new initiative to equip young people with the tools and hard skills they need to start and run their own businesses. A total of 12 children were given sewing machines in 2023. Mariama, one of the recipients, who is a Junior Secondary School (JSS) 3 student decided she won’t leave school for business but, instead, will do both.
“When I received the machine, I was so happy this was going to change my life,” she says. “I said to myself, this does not mean the end of my schooling. So, I go to school in the morning, I am off from school at 4:20 pm. After school, I eat, rest a little and go to the tailoring workshop for a few hours before I head back home for studies or do my homework.

Mariama’s parents, Mohamed and Isata, were not lucky to have the kind of support and opportunity Mariama has in life. They are both struggling subsistence farmers. “I am doing everything possible to get a life that my parents did not have while growing up,” she says.
Mariama learned the art of sewing from her uncle, Siaffa, who is a renowned tailor in their community for at least a decade. ‘’My uncle taught me how to sew. I was under his apprenticeship for 2 years, and I gained a lot of experience,’’ she says. Knowing how to sew clothes within 2 years is an impressive milestone for Siaffa.
“I have trained a lot of people before Mariama, some for over 5 years. But what she has been able to accomplish in two years, is admirable,” says Siaffa. “She is actually a very fast learner.”
Mariama is determined to balance her work as a seamstress with her formal education. “I won’t stop going to school until I achieve my dream of becoming a nurse, and I won’t give up being a seamstress either.”
Since December 2023, Mariama has saved up to 7, 890.00 leones (USD 375) from sewing uniforms, clothes for people in her community. Her community’s population is around 5,113, one of the largest in the district. In the future, she hopes to move to a bigger city like Freetown where being a seamstress is more lucrative.