Associacao Sócio Cultural Horizonte Azul (ASCHA)
Founded in 2005, ASCHA is a feminist women-led organization with a consistent track record of transformative community interventions, with a specific focus on the elimination of early unions and gender-based violence in Maputo, Mozambique.
With the Changemakers grant, ASCHA will work with multiple stakeholders to deconstruct the social norms that perpetuate child marriage and early unions. They will continue to offer programs where girls can socialize and access information about human rights, sexual and reproductive health, and gender equality, as well as opportunities for leadership development.
FROM ASCHA
This partnership with the Girls First Fund represents a strategic milestone for ASCHA, as it reinforces our commitment to promoting human development, gender equality, and the protection of girls’ and women’s rights. The collaboration expands our technical and operational capacity, enabling us to implement more structured, evidence-based actions geared toward concrete results in communities.
It also signifies recognition of our experience in community work and social mobilization, as well as confidence in our ability to generate real impact. With GFF’s support, we can strengthen local networks, drive community-led initiatives, and ensure that the voices of girls and women are placed at the center of policies and interventions.
In the specific context of eliminating early unions in the Gaza province of Mozambique, this collaboration will strengthen community protection mechanisms; promote the empowerment of girls and young women so that they see themselves as rights holders with the ability to advocate for their rights in all spaces; and consolidate social mobilization strategies that deconstruct harmful norms and practices.
Through the Changemakers program, we will be able to influence behaviors, strengthen support systems, and create conditions for girls to live safely, stay in school, and fully exercise their rights, contributing decisively to the reduction and future elimination of early unions in Gaza.