Empowering Education in Babade: The Impact of School Uniforms on Student Success

Through the generosity of Style Her Empowered (SHE), every student at the Babade public primary school received a new school uniform. In total, 230 children received uniforms, giving them the opportunity to begin the school year with confidence and dignity.

Each student also received a school bag, notebooks, pens, and laundry soap. The soap may seem like an unusual addition, but it's an important part of helping students care for and maintain their uniforms throughout the school year.

What makes SHE's uniforms especially unique is their thoughtful design. Rather than creating a uniform that a child quickly outgrows, SHE designed uniforms that can "grow with the child." The uniforms lace up along the sides, allowing them to be adjusted as children grow. This means a single uniform can often be worn for several years, reducing the financial burden on families while ensuring students continue to have a uniform that fits.

For many of us in the United States, it's easy to think of a school uniform as simply clothing. In Togo, however, school uniforms are often required to attend public school. While public education is available, the cost of a uniform and basic school supplies can place a real strain on families. When parents are supporting several children, these expenses can become a barrier to education. By providing adjustable uniforms, school supplies, and the means to care for those uniforms, this initiative helps remove several of those barriers and allows children to focus on learning.

While access to education in Togo has improved significantly over the past decade, barriers still remain, especially for girls living in rural communities. Financial challenges, household responsibilities, long distances to school, and early marriage and pregnancy all contribute to girls being more likely to leave school as they get older.

In rural areas, about 84% of children attend elementary school. By middle school, attendance falls to just 44%, and by high school, only 24% of students remain enrolled. Among girls who leave school, pregnancy is one of the leading reasons they do not continue their education. Programs like Style Her Empowered help remove one of those barriers by ensuring students have the uniforms, school supplies, and other essentials they need to stay in school.

Babade holds a special place in my heart because it is the village where I served as a Peace Corps Volunteer from 2023 to 2025. During those two years, I lived with a host family, worked alongside local teachers, health workers, and community leaders, and built friendships that continue today.

Style Her Empowered has been working to improve educational opportunities across Togo for years. Since its founding, SHE has distributed more than 13,000 school uniforms to students across the country, including over 5,300 uniforms in 2025 alone. Students supported through SHE's school uniform program receive a new school uniform, school supplies, and other essential items each year to help them stay in school and succeed academically. This ongoing commitment helps ensure that families continue to receive support as their children progress through school.

In addition to its school uniform program, SHE also operates a girls' mentoring program that provides encouragement, guidance, and support beyond the classroom. At this time, the mentoring program is offered in southern Togo and has not yet expanded to the Centrale Region, where Babade is located. However, expanding the program to communities like Babade is part of SHE's long-term vision. As the organization continues to grow and build additional partnerships, it hopes to bring mentoring opportunities to even more students across the country.

At Alafia International, we believe lasting change happens through partnership. We are grateful to Style Her Empowered for investing in the students of Babade and for helping ensure that more children have the resources they need to learn, grow, and pursue their dreams.