A large part of the project focuses on enhancing leadership among both boys and girls to take action on creating safe spaces within their schools, and communities in order that girls may be able to able to access available opportunities to further their education and choice of career without fear of harassment. Participants under this project, conducted Participatory Safety Audits of their respective schools and communities. PSAs helped in providing a spatial analysis of safe and unsafe spaces of their schools and communities. The core objective of conducting the PSA exercise was to develop an appropriate strategy to reduce incidences of sexual harassment and to create safe spaces for women and girls. Some of the findings of PSA were:
- The walls of the schools are very low in height, anybody can scale the walls and get into the school.
- Most of the participants said that toilets are unsafe places for girl and for small boys. In schools, toilets are usually situated at far end corner of the school and are very isolated.
- Crowded places like playground, canteen area, markets were marked as unsafe for girls.
- Most of the participants mentioned that the road to school is very unsafe. Girls gets teased and harassed by men and boys on the way to school or while coming back from school, men and boys wait for girls outside school and pass comments on them.
- Most of the participants agreed that the presence of teachers is an important indicator for safety. Girls said that boys behave properly in front of teachers.
- In their communities, girls expressed that places close to their houses are safe because they are easily accessible and also they know people around these spaces. Girls avoid going to any space outside their own house. If they do go then they are always accompanied by other women/girls/male member of the family.
- Boys stand in group in the crossroads. Eve teasing, commenting, chit chatting and playing loud songs- this is what they do while standing there. This creates an unsafe environment for girls.
