Sinigurisha Campaign

The first message of the campaign was "Gifts don't equal sex. You always have the right to say no!". With this message, the campaign sought to empower youth to say "NO" to cross-generational sex by increasing their awareness of their fundamental right to say "NO" to sugar daddies and sugar mommies, regardless of what gifts or money they are promised or have already received. In this first phase of the campaign, 85 billboards were placed across the country to remind young people of their right to say no to "Shuga Dadis" and "Shuga Mamis".

The second phase of the campaign sought to combat peer pressure as a key driver of cross-generational sex. The message "True Friends Don't Put Me at Risk!" draws upon studies conducted in 2008 in Kigali and all four Rwandan provinces that showed that peer pressure is a key factor encouraging young girls and boys to engage in cross-generational sex. Some young girls are even acting as "pimps" - making connections between their friends and older men, often in exchange for money or gifts. Sinigurisha urges young people to resist and challenge peer pressure, emphasising that true friends would never put their friends at risk.

The third phase of the Sinigurisha campaign urged youth to stand together against cross-generational sex and to focus on achieving their future hopes and dreams. The message was "There is NO price that will buy my future!". This phase of the campaign is based on research that indicated that low self-esteem influences youth to engage in cross-generational sex. Young people feel pressured to have material goods such as fashionable clothes, jewellery, and cell phones, which leads them to accept short-term gifts given by sugar daddies or sugar mommies and puts them at increased pressure for cross-generational sex.

The campaign called on all Rwandans - not just youth - to engage in the fight against cross-generational sex. The campaign also reached out to opinion leaders, teachers, parents, and communities with the message that sugar daddies and sugar mommies should be considered "Enemies of Rwanda's Bright Future." According to the organisers, the commitment of political, religious, and other opinion leaders to sensitise and mobilise communities is especially important. They can play an important role in encouraging society as a whole to first acknowledge that cross-generational sex is wrong, shameful, and risky, and then to stop it.

In addition to appearing on billboards, the campaign's messages were broadcast in television and radio spots, and publicised via print materials and community events. Orange wristbands were distributed which announced that the wearer is not for sale.

Three films were also produced to support the campaign and were broadcast on Rwanda TV. The films were produced with the help of a theatre competition carried out in 60 schools (in 14 districts) as part of the Abajene! youth movement. A local non-governmental organisation (NGO) called RAPP (Rwandans Allied for Peace and Progress) trained teachers and students in forum theatre techniques. Following that, two rounds of competitions were held where schools wrote and performed their own plays. The three winning plays were made into short films by RAPP together with the student actors who wrote and performed the original plays.

HIV/AIDS

Cross-generational sex refers to sexual relationships between girls and older men (sugar daddies), and boys and older women (sugar mommies) - often in exchange for gifts and money. Evidence suggests that cross-generational sex happens in Rwanda.

• Girls aged 20-24 are five times more likely to be infected with HIV than boys of same age (Rwanda Demographic and Health Survey (DHS), 2005);
• One out of 10 girls has her first sexual experience with a man who is 10 or more years older (Rwanda Behaviour Surveillance Survey (BSS), 2006);
• Since older men are much more likely to be infected with HIV than younger boys, young girls appear to be getting infected by older men, rather than by boys of their own age (Rwanda DHS, 2005).

According to organisers, cross-generational sex increases the risk for sexually transmitted infections, including HIV, and for unwanted pregnancies - all of which can lead to school drop-out and family conflict. As a result, cross-generational sex can cause girls to be less productive in schools and at the work place.

Some of the factors that lead to cross-generational sex include the following:

• "Permissive" environments that make cross-generational sex "easier". These include: (a) homes: where "trusted" family members or friends target domestic workers or younger family members. (b)schools: where sugar daddies and mommies target students by pretending to be family members to pick up students during breaks or weekends. (c) hotels: where sugar daddies and mommies believe they won't be caught. (d) cars: where sugar daddies and mommies give lifts to boys and girls in need.
• Peer pressure within an urban network of girls who act as "pimps" - making connections between their friends and older men - often in exchange for money or gifts.
• Economic need among youth who seek out older partners with money to buy material goods that make them more "cool", to pay for their school fees, or to get a job.
• Loneliness and the desire for sexual gratification among older men and women lead to them seeking younger partners.