Here at Aidlink, we are committed to giving a voice to the world’s most vulnerable people, listening to their needs, speaking up for them and working with them to create a better future. Our work in Kenya, Uganda and Ghana is carried out in partnership with local organisations on the ground, so they can be drivers of change for themselves.

Aidlink works closely with the Girl Child Network, a Kenya based NGO which links 300 local organisations to promote and implement gender equality and the rights of the girl child in their community. Both GCN and Aidlink believe that the provision and protection of these rights is key to enabling communities to develop and prosper.

We’re not the only ones who think that going back to basics and building on girls’ rights can create a better future for the poorest communities as a whole. Each week, we will share a podcast examining how empowering women and girls can put in to motion the process of change where it is needed most.

This week, we are listening to The Guardian’s Small Changes Podcast Series, a champion of the back to basics approach. Our podcast pick of the week sees Leah Chebet Psiya, of the Pokot Women’s Empowerment Organisation in Kenya, explain to The Guardian’s Lucy Lamble how overcoming barriers to girls’ education such as FGM is key to keeping them in education and enabling them to take up leadership roles in local government in later life.

To listen to this (19 minute) podcast, click httpss://www.theguardian.com/global-development/audio/2018/may/23/fgm-female-genital-mutilation-fighting-for-change-kenya-leah-chebet-psiya-podcast.