Three Adolescent Girls, One Hope for a More Secure Future

From Selling Peanuts to Building a Future: Gifty’s Hope for a Business of Her Own 

At 19, Gifty is already familiar with the responsibilities of adulthood. 

Every day, she carries roasted peanuts and maize around her community, moving from place to place to find customers and earn enough to support herself and her young daughter, Madina, who is one and a half years old. 

But Gifty dreams of something more. 

She wants to have a business of her own—one that can provide her with a more stable income and give her the opportunity to build a better future for herself and her daughter. 

Gifty’s journey has not been easy. She lost both her parents six years ago, when she was still a young girl. The youngest of six siblings—three boys and three girls—she was unable to continue her education beyond Junior High School. She reached JHS 3 but could not sit for the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) because her family could no longer afford the associated costs. 

At 17, Gifty married a farmer. Two years later, she is a mother and is doing what she can to make ends meet through her small peanut and maize business. 

Then she heard about an opportunity that could help her turn her determination into a sustainable livelihood. 

A social welfare officer in her community told her about a programme supporting girls who want to acquire practical skills and establish small businesses. Gifty expressed her interest late last year and went through the selection process. In February 2026, she was informed that she had been selected to participate. 

After completing the enrolment process, which included providing her biometric information and identification details, Gifty joined other selected girls in June for life and business skills training in her community. 

For Gifty, the training gave her more than she expected. It gave her practical knowledge that she could immediately relate to her everyday life and business. 

Conducted in her local language, the sessions covered personal hygiene and self-care, effective communication with customers, business record-keeping, saving, reinvesting profits and marketing products. 

“I have learnt how to communicate with my customers and keep records of my business,” Gifty said. “I have also learnt that when I make a profit, I should not spend everything but put some of it back into the business so that it can grow.” 

With each lesson, Gifty is beginning to see possibilities beyond the small trade she currently does. 

She hopes to complete the remaining training sessions and eventually establish a business of her own, one that will give her greater financial independence and help her provide for Madina. 

“I am thankful for the support,” she said. “I am expecting the programme to deliver on all the promises it has made to us.” 

For Gifty, the journey from carrying peanuts and maize around town to running a business of her own is still unfolding. But with new skills, determination and an opportunity to chart a different path, she is hopeful that a more secure future is within reach—not only for herself but also for her young daughter. 

Linda’s Hope for a Better Future Begins with a Second Chance 

At 18, Linda is already a mother, a wife and a provider for her family. But behind these responsibilities is an adolescent girl determined to build a better future for herself and her two-year-old daughter, Priscilla. 

Linda left school in Class 5. With little support available to continue her education, she had to drop out and turn her attention to helping her family survive. 

Her circumstances became even more difficult when her father lost his sight about 15 years ago. Her mother subsequently left the family, and Linda was raised by her paternal relatives alongside her seven siblings, three boys and four girls. As the youngest child, Linda grew up witnessing the challenges her family faced and learning to take on responsibilities at an early age. 

At just 15, she married a 22-year-old farmer. Three years later, she is raising her young daughter while also trying to contribute to her family’s wellbeing. 

Today, Linda sells food in her community to earn an income. It is modest work, but it provides a way for her to support her family and meet some of their daily needs. 

Then came an opportunity that Linda hopes will change the direction of her life. 

Through the programme, she has begun receiving life and business skills training designed to help girls develop the knowledge and confidence they need to establish sustainable livelihoods. 

For Linda, the lessons are practical and relevant to the future she wants to build. She is learning about self-care, customer service, saving, investment, and how to manage and grow a small business. 

She sees the programme as more than training. For her, it is a pathway towards greater independence. 

Linda is determined to take the lessons seriously and make the most of the opportunity she has been given. 

“I am grateful to UNICEF for identifying us and coming to our aid,” she said. “I will take the lessons seriously and use the opportunity wisely.” 

She believes that with the right support and skills, adolescent girls like her can overcome the circumstances that have held them back. 

Linda hopes the programme will help her and other girls build sustainable livelihoods and eventually move their families out of poverty. 

For an adolescent girl whose education was cut short and whose childhood was shaped by hardship, Linda now has a new opportunity to learn, grow and create a different future—one in which she can give her daughter greater opportunities than she herself had. 

Benedicta’s Journey Back Home and Her Dream of Starting Her Own Business 

For Benedicta, home has never been just one place. 

The 17-year-old spent part of her childhood in Kumasi, where she lived with her grandfather after her mother abandoned her as a baby. It was there that she started school and grew up speaking Twi fluently. 

Until she was 10, Benedicta lived with her grandfather and helped him on his cocoa farm. He was more than a grandparent; he was her caregiver and one of the people who provided stability in her young life. 

But when he passed away, that stability disappeared. 

Economic hardship forced Benedicta to leave school while she was in Primary 6. She returned to her community in the north, where she was later entrusted with caring for her elderly grandmother, who was sick at the time. Her grandmother eventually passed away a few years ago. 

With the loss of the people who had cared for her, Benedicta had to find ways to support herself. 

Since returning to the village, she has worked on other people’s farms to earn a living. The work provides an income, but it is irregular and offers little security or opportunity to build something of her own. 

That is why the opportunity to participate in the programme means so much to her. 

Through the life and business skills training, Benedicta is gaining knowledge she hopes will help her move beyond casual farm work and establish a livelihood of her own. 

The training has taught her how to take better care of herself, interact with customers, manage a business, save money, invest profits and make decisions that can help a small enterprise grow. 

These may sound like simple lessons, but for Benedicta, they represent something much bigger: the possibility of becoming economically independent. 

She is looking forward to the next stage of the programme, where she hopes to gain further support and eventually start her own business. 

“I am very grateful that you came to find us,” she said. 

Benedicta’s story is one of resilience. After losing the people who cared for her and having her education interrupted by economic hardship, she has continued to find ways to move forward. 

Now, with new skills and an opportunity to shape her own livelihood, she is looking ahead with hope. 

Her dream is simple: to have work of her own, earn a sustainable income and build a secure future.