When Lydia Wilbard was just ten years old, her mother died. From that moment on, Lydia dreamed of becoming a nurse so that she could help to cure people when they got sick. But growing up in a small village in rural Tanzania, her ambitions seemed like an impossible dream.

Lydia was sent to live with her aunt who had seven sons of her own. Conditions were tough and Lydia had little time to go to school because she was too busy cooking, cleaning, collecting wood and washing clothes for her male cousins while they went off to school. (more…)

The following is an extract from a Cama Zimbabwe report on members’ activities during 2007. Cama, the Camfed alumni, is a pan-African membership organisation made up of young women supported through their education by Camfed and joined by other young rural women dedicated to working for change. In her own words, Tinyiko describes how she supported her neighbour’s child and the impact this had on her own self-esteem. (more…)

Mariam is an orphan. She is 10 years old. She lost both of her parents to AIDS and lives with her grandmother in the Northern Region of Ghana. Thanks to Camfed’s support, Mariam is able to go to school and she studies in Class 3. Usually, Camfed doesn’t offer support to girls until they reach Class 4, but Mariam was chosen as a special case so that she could continue with her schooling in spite of losing both her parents. (more…)

Sumaya Alidu is 16-years-old and lives in the Northern Region of Ghana with her grandmother. Sumaya’s mother died and her father works many hundreds of miles away in Ghana’s capital, Accra. Sumaya missed many years of school before Camfed stepped in, but when she was 13, Camfed started to pay her school fees so that she could continue her studies. (more…)

When Sharifatu was 14, her family moved from one region of Northern Ghana to another. With two boys and three girls to support, the family could no longer afford the fees to send Sharifatu to school. That was when Camfed stepped in to support Sharifatu so that she could continue her education. Now aged 17, Sharifatu is looking forward to going on to Senior Secondary School and hopes to go on and train to be a nurse. (more…)

Cindy is 13 years old. She lives in a village in rural Zambia. Her best friends are Precious and Exildah and she dreams of becoming a lawyer. (more…)