Her future, her power: Advancing health and well-being in Northern Mozambique

By Francesca Olusola Manager, Grants, World Vision Canada, Sophia Papastavrou, PhD., Gender Technical Specialist and Adeyinka Onabolu, Technical Specialist, Protection, Gender and Inclusion, World Vision Canada

On this International Day of Action for Women’s Health, we affirm the fundamental rights of adolescent girls and young women to bodily autonomy, access to comprehensive health information and a life free from violence and discrimination. In Northern Mozambique, the Every Girl Can (EGC) project is advancing these rights by transforming harmful social norms and shifting power relations that limit girls’ and young women’s agency.

Through 326 community-based clubs in Monapo, Murrupula and Nacarôa districts, the EGC project has engaged over 32,600 adolescent girls and young women (ages 8–24) in safe, mentor-led spaces that foster critical reflection, solidarity and collective action. These clubs use a locally adapted curriculum to build knowledge on sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), menstrual health, bodily integrity and consent—while also equipping participants to identify and challenge gender-based violence (GBV) and forced marriage.

By centering girls’ voices and leadership, the clubs provide essential information and psychosocial support, and strengthen the enabling environment toward gender equality in families, schools and communities. Today, we celebrate the impact of these clubs—and the girls and mentors leading the way.

Every Girl Can is a five-year project aimed at improving gender equality and realizing adolescent girls’ and young women’s (ages 8-24) right to live free from sexual and gender-based violence and discrimination. It is implemented by World Vision, Action Aid, and HOPEM with support from Global Affairs Canada.

Safe spaces that promote health and voice

Sinoca, a participant in the community-based girls’ clubs, reflects on her personal transformation:

“Before joining the club, my understanding of sexual and reproductive health was very limited. I didn’t feel like I had a choice in my own relationships. My boyfriend was aggressive, and I often felt pressured to engage in things I didn’t want. But the club sessions helped me understand my rights. I found the courage to talk to him, and now, he respects my decisions. That’s a huge shift for me.”

Sinoca’s experience underscores how localized, safe spaces led by trained female facilitators are enabling adolescent girls and young women to build knowledge and life skills as well as exercise agency to prevent and respond to SGBV. In a country where nearly 1 in 4 women report intimate partner violence, these shifts are critical to improving public health outcomes and advancing gender justice.

Beyond SRHR, the clubs serve as platforms for voice and leadership.

“It’s not just a place where you listen,” Sinoca shares. “We are encouraged to speak, to be heard. I learned to speak publicly, claim my rights and protect myself from violations. It’s a space of strength and freedom — I see how it’s changing the lives of so many of us.”

For Saquina, 21, the project has brought similar empowerment:

“I’m grateful for the sessions. I can now speak with confidence about my body, my rights and my sexual freedom — especially within my relationship.”

These locally grounded clubs are not only equipping young women with information — they are shifting power relations by fostering self-advocacy, peer solidarity and community transformation.

From information to access

Every Girl Can doesn’t stop at building knowledge. The clubs facilitate referrals to youth-friendly health and gender-responsive services in the community through partnerships with the District Department of Health and Social Welfare. Elizabete, 24, learned about family planning and the different contraceptive methods available in health units through the clubs.

“After the sessions, I went to the health unit and adopted a contraceptive method of my choice,” says Elizabete. “Before I joined the club, I was afraid due to the myths that circulated in the community.”

Improving access to contraception through the clubs contributes to closing the 29% gap in unmet need for family planning in the country.

Enabling environment advances young women’s health

Sinoca and Elizabete call on parents, leaders and community heads to encourage young women to participate in the clubs and other spaces where they gain useful information that promotes their health and wellbeing.

Egnes, a mentor from one of the girls' clubs, believes that, "If we work together, we can promote girls' and women's health, reduce domestic violence and ensure more opportunities for girls."

Every Girl Can safe spaces are enabling adolescent girls to claim their rights, shape their futures and hold systems accountable to their needs. By investing in community-driven safe spaces and rights-based education, we are strengthening locally led structures that advance gender equality and ensure every girl has the opportunity not just to survive, but to thrive. When girls rise, entire communities rise with them—and the future becomes one of justice, dignity and unstoppable potential.