How players of People’s Postcode Lottery are supporting ActionAid
Salome, 14, at her primary school, Kenya. Salome ran away from home aged 12 to avoid FGM and child marriage.
Jennifer Huxta/Actionaid
The People’s Postcode Lottery has helped to protect girls like Salome from FGM
Salome was only 12 when she ran away from home to escape female genital mutilation (FGM). When her father called a cutter early one morning she fled, walking over 200km to find a school to take her in and protect her.
I didn’t know anywhere to go, I just ran in one direction… I slept overnight in a tree the first day.
Now, Salome is safe, but she is still not in contact with her family. With the support of players of the People’s Postcode Lottery, ActionAid is working to end FGM so that girls like Salome will no longer be forcibly cut.
We provide direct support to women and girls who have escaped FGM. We help communities to learn and openly talk about its damaging effects, and we train women to form Women’s Watch Groups to report cases of FGM.
Examples of how players of People’s Postcode Lottery are supporting our work globally
With players’ support, ActionAid has been able to work across 29 countries to end violence, respond to crises and fight poverty so that all women, everywhere, can create the future they want.
In Zimbabwe, over 26,000 women, girls and people with disabilities are working with their communities and schools to address power imbalances and challenge social norms to combat gender-based violence and create stronger inclusive spaces for girls and people with disabilities.
Across Somaliland, Kenya, Senegal and Ethiopia, ActionAid has also been working alongside the Africa-Led Movement to end Female Genital Mutilation, working to raise awareness and secure laws against the practice.
By supporting ActionAid’s Emergency Action Fund, People’s Postcode Lottery are also helping the organisation to respond as soon as crises occur, such as during the Ebola outbreak, the Rohingya refugee crises, and many others.
Thanks to players’ support, ActionAid has also been able to work with more communities on building resilience against the impacts of climate change and other crises. As a result, ActionAid is now expanding this vital work in northern Mozambique, and South Central Somaliland.
By enabling ActionAid to bring women leaders to United Nations COP (Conference of Parties), they were able to share their experiences of how climate change is devastating their communities and amplify their demands to bring about meaningful change.
At COP27, this work helped lead to a historic decision to establish a loss and damage fund for countries that are facing extreme climate impacts and disasters.
By giving unrestricted and flexible funds, players of The People’s Postcode Lottery has also allowed ActionAid to fund innovative pilot projects such as the recent Girl-Led research, led by 36 girls across Bangladesh, Indonesia and Ethiopia, paving the way for a radical change to the charity runs its programmes, putting girl’s needs at the heart of the work. It has also allowed ActionAid to run Women by Women, a unique photographic campaign championing the inspirational stories of women and girls and the remarkable talent of women photographers worldwide
These are just a few examples of how players of the People’s Postcode Lottery are making a huge difference – their support stretches far beyond this and continues to achieve amazing things every day.
Page updated 29 July 2024
