Set Her Free equips Uganda’s most vulnerable girls and young women with the knowledge and skills that they need to lead self-determined lives, forever breaking the cycle of poverty. ​Just being a woman poses unimaginable risks in Uganda. For example, a girl growing up in Kampala’s urban slums may face a future where she must drop out of school because the cost of education is too high or feel pressured into commercial sex work to earn a living. Set Her Free envisions a world where all women and girls have access to education and training, and they can choose how to live their lives. 
 
In order to provide girls and women with the tools to create better futures for themselves, their families, and their communities, Set Her Free offers a wide range of services. Their flagship programs are their educational programs; they provide in-house vocational training in in-demand crafts such as tailoring and hairdressing, as well as sponsorships for girls to pursue a formal education. As a result of their commitment to equipping girls with the practical skills they need to succeed, Set Her Free also provides finance and business training to the girls in their vocational programs, so they graduate from Set Her Free with the tools to succeed in business. Additionally, they offer living space for girls attending their programs who don’t have another safe space to live. Set Her Free also has a farm where they grow fresh produce, which teaches the girls about agriculture and nutrition, serves as a food source for the girls living at Set Her Free, and provides income to fund their programs. 
 
Throughout the wider Kampala community, Set Her Free trains young women to be peer mentors. These peer mentors lead safe spaces in their own neighborhoods, which provide safe places for young women to be together and discuss difficulties going in their lives. This is an especially important resource for young women who might have difficulty making it regularly to Set Her Free’s headquarters. Another key piece of their programming is medical services, as Set Her Free offers HIV testing, reproductive and sexual education, and food security support to community members in need. Outside Kampala, Set Her Free owns another property, this one tailored to the needs of pregnant women, nursing mothers, and newborns. With this property, named Angel House, Set Her Free is able to provide these women and babies a safe, peaceful place outside the hustle and bustle of Kampala to get back on their feet. 
 
Set Her Free’s biggest priority is expanding their capacity so they can host more programs, offer living space to more girls, and serve even more of the wider Kampala community. To that end, they have purchased a new property just minutes away from their current headquarters and are in the process of renovating it to create more classroom and dorm space. 

GlobeMed at GW has been honored to be partnered with Set Her Free. Working with Set Her Free comprises most of our activities throughout the school year. We raise awareness about their organization, send interns to work there every summer, and, most importantly, fundraise for their work. Donations to Set Her Free help fund their renovation—for example, $1 buys 10 bricks, and $10 buys a bag of cement—pay the salaries of the staff who teach the girls and run the programs, and help empower the next generation of women in Uganda.