The community of Agostinho Neto, district of Lobata, was the chosen scenery for the launching of the project "Empowerment of Girls" that has as main objective the accomplishment of the national strategy of gender.

It is a project made up of the following components: increased technical business capacity through UNICEF, increased access to finance for startups led by women in vulnerable situations through UNDP, increased capacity of women-led startup associations through ILO, and increased education-related safety nets available for girls in vulnerable situations through UNICEF.

The project targets girls aged 18-24 who have experienced early pregnancy, are at risk of dropping out of school and those who have dropped out for some reason.

At the time, the Minister of Youth, Vinício Pina, underlined the importance of the project because "we have seen in recent times, an increasing number of this section of the population of school age abandoning their studies, especially in this pandemic period due to various factors, mainly economic, social, financial, among others, especially young women, which may be perfectly reversed with this project in a well defined way, implemented to combat this growing index that graces our society.

Throughout the project, training in entrepreneurship will be implemented as a tool of capital importance capable of allowing girls to be better integrated in society so that they can be their own solutions, those of their families and of society.

The UNICEF representative said that "we should work so that each family, each woman, each youth, each adolescent and each child can enjoy a family life, a social context favourable to their health and well-being and development. In fact, as you know, women, girls and children are unfortunately the most affected, especially as regards the socio-economic impacts of this pandemic.

The project lasts 3 months and is supported by UNICEF, UNDP and ILO to build the capacities of 180 girls who have dropped out of school by providing training in life skills, sex education and sewing, entrepreneurship, etc.

The project aims to make the girls attend school and be informed about professional opportunities and develop other skills in women empowerment.

In the context of the activities of the SDG-Fund, a joint fund of the United Nations System for inclusion and empowerment of families and youths, the Entrepreneurship Department started in Ponta-Figo, district of Lembá, the first Family Budget, Savings and Dissemination of the Social Entrepreneurship primer for about 300 families and youths distributed over 13 localities of the country.

This program is the result of a United Nations Fund, made available to countries in the context of the #ODS for the implementation of a catalytic program focused on Social Protection. At a global level, 24 countries were selected and Sao Tome & Principe came in 2nd place in the presentation of proposals.

Budgeted at U$D 2 million the Joint Programme was implemented under the leadership of the Ministry of Labour, Solidarity, Family and Vocational Training in close collaboration with the Office of the Resident Coordinator and three other Ministries (of Health, Youth, Sports and Entrepreneurship and the Ministry of Education) and four other UN Agencies (UNDP, UNICEF, WHO and ILO).

The programme aims to support the Government in implementing the Social Register, the parental education programme, Youth engagement through social entrepreneurship and access to Health and nutrition with monitoring and case management through DHIS2.

The implementation of this activity in the districts identified (Mé-zochi, Água Grande and Lembá), arises from the need to promote financial inclusion and awaken in young people the interest in planning to save and invest, empowering and equipping them with tools that enable them to create their own businesses.