A coach highlights the trust girls place in her, sharing intimate details about pressures related to Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), pressure to drop out of school, and unsafe relationships that they cannot discuss with others.
In Uganda’s remote areas, FGM persists as a severe human rights violation and public health concern. For girls in the Sebei community, this is intertwined with deeply ingrained gender norms that escalate risks of child marriage, school dropout, and violence.
However, change is beginning to emerge on school grounds and athletic tracks.
A Coach, a Track, and a Safe Space
Ms. Chepteok works with the Joshua Cheptegei Development Foundation, in collaboration with a Joint Programme between the UN reproductive health agency (UNFPA) and the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF). This initiative aims to eradicate FGM by using sports as a starting point, particularly to reach young girls who are often excluded from opportunities.
“This mindset undermines their social, intellectual, and cultural potential,” Chepteok stated. “Sport helps us question this.”
For many girls, resisting harmful practices comes at a significant personal cost. Those who refuse FGM may face pressure, ostracism, or even violence for rejecting tradition.
FGM, defined as harming or altering female genitalia for non-medical reasons, is often followed by child marriage and early school departure. All these situations are closely linked to poverty, which both triggers and is reinforced by these harms.
From Community Runs to Classrooms
An annual Christmas run brings together girls and boys from the Sebei region. However, the event is more than just a race. Twelve girls from these runs are selected for educational scholarships that help them enroll in secondary school.
“Many of these girls come from communities where FGM is still practiced. Without sport and education, many would have already been married or dropped out of school,” said Ms. Chepteok.
As girls begin to excel in athletics and academics, societal attitudes are slowly shifting.
“Some parents now see that athletics can transform not just an individual girl, but the entire community,” she added. “When these girls run, they are running away from harmful practices and towards a future of their own choosing.”
Learning Safety, Rights, and Self-Worth
Ms. Chepteok also provides guidance on age-appropriate sexual and reproductive health, alongside personal safety and psychosocial support counseling.
She assists girls in navigating the pressures that come with visibility and achievement in communities where independence is still contentious.
“Girls who are successful athletes are often told, ‘You should stop running and get married,’” she noted. However, financial independence and education offer them options.
These discussions have become more urgent following the 2024 killing of Ugandan long-distance runner Rebecca Cheptegei by her former partner after a land dispute.
“We are talking about safety because we don’t want to lose more women,” Chepteok said. “Female athletes become more vulnerable because they question traditional gender roles, but no woman should be punished for pursuing her potential.”
“Female athletes become financially and socially more independent, and this can trigger violence in a society that believes a woman’s place is in the kitchen taking care of children,” she added.
Freedom Through Sport
For Ms. Chepteok, the goal is clear: “Sport should give girls freedom, not put their lives at risk.”
Through these efforts, hundreds of young people, parents, and local leaders in Uganda are reaching messages to end FGM, promote sexual and reproductive health and rights, and advance gender equality.
UNFPA and its partners support community-based approaches that help girls and women live free from violence, access accurate health information and services, make informed decisions about their bodies, and realize their full potential.
