Nura Kemis 
Interactive initiative empowers girls to navigate key issues like HPV prevention, tobacco refusal, and family planning.
-
Innovative board game makes life skills accessible for girls with limited digital access.
-
An engaging, community-building and relevant tool for adolescent Kenyan girls.
-
Advances SKY Girls’ mission to empower girls with choice-based learning.
SKY Girls Kenya has launched an innovative board game, ‘HOW TO FIND YOUR SKY’. Designed to help adolescents tackle real world scenarios and negative influences, it is already positively impacting 150,000 girls in Nairobi and Kisumu across 100+ schools.
The initiative is transforming how vital topics like HPV, tobacco, and family planning are addressed, making learning accessible, interactive, and relevant.
Bridging the access gap for girls
Girls in boarding or remote schools have limited access to social and digital content to help them navigate complex pressures. As a solution, the board game offers an engaging, repeatable way for them to build life skills together.
Inspired by the popularity of interactive games in Sky Magazine, the team created a resource that could have lasting, repeated impact.
Learning by doing: real scenarios, real choices
‘HOW TO FIND YOUR SKY’ places girls at the center of relatable situations—friendships, school, relationships, and peer influence. By rolling the dice, players are faced with hard life decisions, for which they must use ‘choice cards’ to shape their character’s journey.
As in real life, every choice faces a consequence – positive choices are rewarded with points.
Will they prioritize career advancement, pursue personal passions, or focus on building relationships? As the teens play, they discuss, debate, and make decisions. This builds confidence and practical skills in a safe, supportive setting.
“What I really love about the game is that the scenarios are just like the things we go through as girls every day. It feels real—and it shows me step by step how I can handle those situations better,” shared a Form 3 student from Moi Girls.
Crucially, sensitive issues like tobacco use, HPV Vaccine, and teen pregnancy prevention are woven into gameplay, making these subjects easier to talk about and less intimidating.
Despite government efforts, HPV vaccination remains a challenge in Kenya, with only 33% of eligible girls fully vaccinated.
Proof of impact
Girls who’ve actively engaged with the board game have experienced significant personal development shifts including:
-
86% of SKY Girls confidently discovered new ways to deal with peer and sexual pressure
-
40% of girls learnt more about HPV
-
40% learned new ways of dealing with a pressure to smoke
“We strongly believe that when girls are equipped to handle pressure, they can make choices that keep them true to their values.
That’s why we developed HOW TO FIND YOUR SKY – an interactive board game that gives girls the tools to practice real-life scenarios in a safe, engaging way.
Here, girls role-play everyday scenarios, discuss their choices and learn from each other for proven, lasting positive results.” Edna Njeri, Project Lead, Sky Girls Kenya
Authentic, relatable, and built with girls
The scenarios and language used are drawn directly from real experiences of Kenyan girls. The development process involved extensive testing over one year with girls themselves.
It is built on years of insights and learnings from the SKY program, created with them, making it a genuinely empowering and relevant tool.
“I’ve learned that there’s not just one way to deal with uncomfortable situations. The game taught me different ways I can respond, and now I feel more prepared and in control.” Student, Form 2, Beth Mugo Secondary
Community endorsement
With 2000 editions produced, the board game is supplied strictly for free to schools and is endorsed by teachers, parents, and the Ministry of Education.Plans are underway to expand the program countrywide and introduce a mobile version in the next 12–18 months.
“It has impacted them positively, they prefer having the game most of the time including weekends, hence cases of indiscipline or aimless movement are reduced.” Teacher Wekesa, Beth Mugo Girls
“They are more creative and it has improved their decision making skills, more so they have embraced negotiation skills even amongst themselves in school.” Madam Hilda, Nembu Girls
Teaser: SKY Girls gears up for PAA season 4 unveil
The highly successful and popular teen drama series returns with a new, fourth season and an all new female cast. It is set to debut in November on the SKYGirlsKE YouTube channel.
Expect greater drama, diversified storylines and upcoming Kenyan actors.
SKY Girls Kenya’s board game initiative is conceptualized and executed by Tandem Impact, and supported by the Gates Foundation.
SKY Girls Kenya welcomes community support, and funding partnerships to help scale this impactful initiative (https://www.skygirlske.com/findyoursky)
