A senior Rotary Club of Barbados member urged policymakers not to overlook the country’s youngest and most vulnerable mothers as the government rolls out expanded parental leave and other measures to support working women.
As the service club launched the second edition of a project aimed at supporting young mothers, former president, Arlene Ross told Barbados TODAY that while she welcomed the state’s efforts, “more must be done to support under-age mothers”, a group she described as often forgotten and heavily stigmatised.
Project Amai, first launched in 2024, works with mothers aged 13 to 24, providing training, mentorship and other forms of support. This year, 50 young women applied, but the organisation could only accept 25.
Ross noted that pregnancy in the early school years often derails much-needed opportunities for young mothers.
“A lot of them, if you get pregnant while you’re in third form, fourth form, you drop out of school and generally don’t go back,” she said. “So then you don’t have any sort of qualification or skill to get a job and yet you have a child or two to support.”
Immediate Past President of the Rotary Club of Barbados Arlene Ross (centre) speaking to Rotary Club officials during the morning’s launch for the second edition of Project Amai. (SB)
Through Project Amai, she added, the young mothers are receiving vocational training and some are now preparing to sit CXC maths and English. Entrepreneurial guidance is also a core part of the programme. More importantly, Ross said, the girls are given a judgement-free environment in which they can speak about their struggles and aspirations.
She said: “We really talk to them and it’s a safe space. They know that they trust us, and they will tell us what they need. None of them have an easy situation. It’s all very difficult for them and so they need the support. They need a buffer because if you are 15 years old and have a child, there isn’t much you could do for yourself to change your situation. You need help.”
The new Family Leave Act extends statutory maternity leave from 12 weeks to 14 weeks in the case of a single birth, and 17 weeks for multiple births. It also removes the cap on how many times a woman may claim maternity leave from the same employer and lifts the requirement that the child be born in Barbados.
Ross said those improvements are welcome, but under-age mothers face a number of disadvantages that must be addressed by stakeholders. She recalled a recent Rotary donation of a breast pump to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit: “Persons asked if we could have something like a blood bank, a milk bank, where people could express the milk and store it. [The official] said we don’t have what is required. That’s one of the things that could be looked into.”
Project Amai, launched in October 2024, provide participants with counselling, legal and medical access, HR and psychosocial support, meals, a transport stipend, on-site childcare and appropriate clothing for job interviews. The first cohort saw 12 young mothers graduate, now forming part of a growing alumni network.
Ross said the programme has proven that, given structure and support, young mothers can gain much-needed personal and professional development.
(SB)
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