The inter-school competition teams. Credit: Seydou Sanogo.
On 17 May 2025, the Yellen Project organised an inter-school competition between students from the high schools targeted by the project. The aim of this activity was to assess the impact of the KiLaDi digital platform on adolescents' knowledge and perceptions of SRHR. The KiLaDi pilot project (‘to advise’ in Bambara) aims to raise awareness among adolescents in the Kayes region of Mali about SRHR, gender equality and gender-based violence (GBV).
The project uses digital tools such as WhatsApp, Facebook and a mobile app to provide information and interactive exchanges, while organising awareness-raising activities in the four targeted high schools. The aim is to prevent situations that pose a risk to adolescents' health and to improve their knowledge of their rights in order to promote access to health services and advocacy.
An artistic and socially engaged competition
The inter-school competition was designed as a space for young people to express themselves artistically and creatively. It enabled them to consolidate their understanding of key messages on SRHR, while highlighting the important role that the KiLaDi digital platform plays in disseminating these messages.
After the preliminary rounds, the finalist teams gathered in Kayes and each presented four art forms: poetry/slam, sketch, video clip and artwork. The jury, composed of institutional and educational representatives, evaluated the performances of students from the five participating schools: the public high schools of Bafoulabé, Diéma and Yélimané, the Sanéba Sakaliba school complex in Mahina and the Teacher Training Institute (IFM) in Nioro. Each team presented their work, highlighting both the students' artistic sensibility and their understanding of the themes addressed.
The jury and the audience were thrilled by the voices and creations of the young artists. The winners received laptops (1st prize), tablets (2nd prize) and phones or school supplies (3rd prize).
Some examples of the works presented: sketch, poem and artwork. Credit: Seydou Sanogo.
Discover the poems of the two winners in video (in french only).
-Say what is unsaid! Shed light on what has been hidden. By Absétou Diop from the Teacher Training Institute in Nioro
-My body, my right! By Mariam Batouly Balde from Diema High School
Inspiring testimonials
At first, I didn't want to participate because this subject (SRHR) is very taboo in our families. Thanks to the Yellen project, I learned that it shouldn't be and that we need to sit down and talk about it. I would like to thank them for organising these (awareness) days in our schools. We sat down, girls and boys, we talked, we laughed, we learned. Mariam Batouly Balde, student at Diema Public High School
In my 26-year career, I have never seen a project that has been so successful in the field of education (on SRHR). The performance of an organisation depends on its human resources. The Yellen project has been able to draw on this pool of talented Malian women and men who are up to the task. Boubacar Diallo, headmaster of Bafoulabé High School.
These stories confirm the transformative nature of the Yellen project, both individually and collectively. On a personal level, several young people have expressed increased self-confidence, a better understanding of their SRHR, and a greater willingness to make their voices heard. On a collective level, the project has helped to break taboos, promote intergenerational dialogue and strengthen community mobilisation around issues of gender equality, GBV and SRHR.
The inter-school competition is part of the final year of implementation of the Yellen Project. With a view to sustainability, the KiLaDi digital platform will be transferred to the National Office for Reproductive Health (ONASR). The ONASR team will continue to work to encourage adolescents to become agents of social change.
Learn more about Yellen Project:
Yellen, ‘Rights and Innovation in Sexual and Reproductive Health in the Kayes Region of Mali,’ is a bilateral cooperation project between the governments of Mali and Canada. It is implemented by a Canadian consortium consisting of the International Health Unit of the University of Montreal Hospital Centre (USI-CHUM) and the Centre for International Studies and Cooperation (CECI). It receives financial support from the Government of Canada through Global Affairs Canada.
This project aims to contribute to transforming unequal gender relations in terms of sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) for women and adolescent girls in seven health districts in the Kayes region (Bafoulabé, Diéma, Nioro, Oussoubidiagna, Sagabari, Séféto and Yélimané). It is based on the assumption that increasing the decision-making power of women and adolescent girls to better control their health will promote increased demand for quality sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services, including for gender-based violence (GBV) and family planning (FP). The project proposes an innovative model of collaboration aimed at harmonising the work of actors in health services, civil society, particularly women's groups, and decentralised communities.