Nairobi, Nov. 16 -- One evening in February 2020, Mercy Sepina (not her real name) was doing her usual domestic chores after school when her father informed her he wanted them to have some discussion.

Sepina, who was nine years old then, was taken aback by her father's call for a discussion as it was very unusual for him to do so. The discussion was swift and short. Her father dropped the bombshell that she would no longer be going to school but would instead be staying at home.

"You are now becoming a woman and soon will have your own family. From today, you will no longer go to school, but stay home to help with the chores," her father told her.

Devastated that this would mark the end of her education journey, she pleaded with her fa...