From silence to empowerment: How knowledge is breaking cycles of despair in Lesotho’s highlands

LIAPENG RALIENGOANE

THABA-TSEKA – A grassroots initiative, backed by international support, is equipping a generation with the tools to reclaim their health and their futures – in the remote mountain village of Halantu, where the air is thin and the horizons are defined by rugged peaks, a quiet revolution is taking place.

A circle of young people, gathered on the dry earth of a village playground, is dismantling taboos that have persisted for generations. Their conversation, punctuated by earnest nods and shy laughter carried on the crisp breeze, is not about crops or weather, but about consent, contraception, and self-worth.

For many, it is the first time they have ever spoken so openly about their bodies and their rights.
This transformative moment is engineered by Help Lesotho, a Canadian non-governmental organization that for nearly two decades has been planting seeds of change in one of the world’s nations hardest hit by HIV/Aids and entrenched poverty. Through school programmes, leadership camps, and community dialogues, the organization is systematically breaking long-held silences, arming Basotho youth with the knowledge to make informed, life-altering decisions about their sexual and reproductive health.

The need for this work is stark.

Lesotho grapples with some of the world’s highest rates of HIV, early pregnancy, and child marriage. In districts like Thaba-Tseka, geographic isolation exacerbates these challenges, limiting access to health services and credible information.

Here, deep-rooted cultural norms often prioritise early marriage for girls, while young herd boys – spending months in remote cattle posts – are frequently left out of development conversations entirely, despite their significant influence on community dynamics.

The human cost of this information gap is etched in the story of a 17-year-old girl from Halantu, whose name is withheld to protect her. Her dreams of an education were cut short in Grade 8 when her parents could no longer afford school fees. Soon after, she entered into a marriage she now deeply regrets.

“I learnt about contraceptives and I especially liked the loop (IUD),” she says softly, after attending a Help Lesotho workshop this past September.

“I wish I had known about them earlier. I would not have fallen pregnant.”

Her voice gains a thread of steel as she speaks of her future. She hopes to return to school after giving birth.

“I want to become a soldier or a nurse,” she states. “Marriage is hard. Sometimes I wish I could still play soccer like before. My advice to other young people is to stay in school and avoid early marriage.”

Her story is a common one, a cycle Help Lesotho is determined to break. The organization’s approach is not a fleeting intervention but a sustained engagement. Lineo Maanela, a 23-year-old from Holantu, is a testament to this long-term commitment. She attended workshops from May to September of this year, but this was not her first exposure to the organization’s teachings.
“This was not my first time; I also attended a Help Lesotho training in 2015,” Maanela shares.

“We were taught about HIV prevention, avoiding early and unintended pregnancies, and the dangers of child marriage. I am thankful for all the knowledge and encouragement I have gained over the years.” Her repeated participation underscores the importance of reinforcement and ongoing support in fostering genuine behavioural change.

A critical and groundbreaking aspect of Help Lesotho’s recent work in Bobete has been the deliberate inclusion of herd-boys. For years, these young men were peripheral figures in youth development programmes, yet their role in shaping social and sexual behaviour in rural communities is profound.

Morero Leqela, a 29-year-old herd boy who attended a training session in June, embodies the transformative potential of this inclusion. He speaks with pride about the lessons learned.

“We learnt about good behaviour, HIV prevention, and crime prevention,” Leqela says.

“Before, we used to feed our animals on reserved land, but now we know it’s wrong and we have stopped. We also learned that consent is important in relationships and how to use condoms properly.

We are thankful to Help Lesotho; we have changed from our old ways. When they come back, they will find us building respectful families.”

This shift in mind-set among the herd-boys is not just anecdotal, it is being observed at the highest levels of community leadership.

Chief Tiisetso Letima of Holantu village confirms the tangible impact.

“The training was for both youth and herd-boys from Bobete on behavioural change, contraceptives, and HIV prevention,” Chief Letima states.

“After the training, herd-boys showed changed behaviour. The grazing on reserved land has stopped. And on child marriage, which was high – last year we had two cases – this year there are none. To Help Lesotho, we are thankful; there is indeed behaviour change.”

The scalability and reach of this life-changing work are supercharged by a crucial partnership. Help Lesotho’s initiatives in Thaba-Tseka and other districts are supported by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), which provides essential financial and technical backing.

UNFPA’s mandate globally is to advance reproductive health and rights, and in Lesotho, this translates directly into supporting local partners who have the trust and grassroots presence to deliver results. The collaboration focuses on reducing early and unintended pregnancy, ending child marriage, and ensuring every young person can make informed choices about their health and future.

This partnership allows Help Lesotho to penetrate the most remote and underserved communities, places where access to a clinic or a trusted adult can be a day’s journey away.

Detective Lance Sergeant Lintle Mankoe of the Thaba-Tseka Police highlights the critical nature of this work, noting that domestic violence and sexual offences remain among the district’s most pressing challenges. In response, the police have strengthened their collaboration with Help Lesotho, recognising that SRHR education is a powerful form of crime and violence prevention.
Help Lesotho is no newcomer to these struggles. Since its founding in 2004, the organization has worked at the intersection of education, gender equality, and leadership development. Its model goes beyond mere information dissemination, incorporating vital psychosocial support to help youth and women process grief, build resilience, and develop the self-esteem necessary to apply their new knowledge.

This holistic, grassroots approach – combining education, dialogue, and mentorship – ensures that the most vulnerable are not left behind. The young people of Holantu now return to their homes with their minds filled with new knowledge about their bodies and their rights, and their hearts fortified with a hope that had previously been in short supply.

For them, and for countless others across Lesotho’s mountainous terrain, SRHR education is not an abstract concept. It is a practical, powerful tool. It is the difference between dropping out and staying in school, between an unintended pregnancy and a planned future, between a forced marriage and a chosen partnership.

It is about breaking, one courageous conversation at a time, the intergenerational cycles of poverty, disease, and disempowerment.

Through its sustained presence and its strategic partnership with UNFPA, Help Lesotho is ensuring that the echoes of those conversations in Halantu become a chorus for change, reverberating across the highlands and empowering a new generation to write a different, more hopeful story for themselves and for Lesotho.