At SHE SOARS (Sexual and Reproductive Health and Economic Empowerment – Supporting Out-of-School Adolescent Girls’ Rights and Skills), we believe that young people are leaders, partners, and agents of change. Meaningful Youth Engagement (MYE) is central to our approach, ensuring that young people’s voices are not only heard but also actively shape decisions about their health, wellbeing, and future opportunities.
Developed from the experiences of out-of-school girls and boys aged 10–19 in Uganda, Kenya, and Zambia, the SHE SOARS MYE Toolkit helps project staff, partners, and young leaders build genuine partnerships and move beyond symbolic participation.
The toolkit provides practical tools to support the co-design, co-implementation, and co-ownership of interventions with young people. It also offers guidance on creating safe, inclusive, and youth-friendly spaces for meaningful participation.
A key feature is the SHE SOARS MYE Progress Marker, a participatory tool that helps assess the quality of youth engagement throughout the project cycle. It promotes stronger youth leadership, better programme design, and lasting change.
Grounded in East and Southern Africa, the toolkit includes country context cards for Uganda, Kenya, and Zambia, highlighting adolescent health challenges and approaches to inclusion. While rooted in these settings, it can be adapted for use across different African contexts.
Ultimately, the SHE SOARS MYE Toolkit is both a practical guide and a call to action. It encourages young people to lead with confidence and challenges adults to share power, listen, and work with young people as equal partners.
