On International Day of the Girl Child (11 October), themed “With Her: A Skilled Girl Force”, IBCR joins UN Women to stand with girls everywhere as they inspire, innovate and take charge of their own future.
The 1.1 billion girls of today’s world are challenging the status quo. They’re redefining girlhood, and they’re doing so against the odds.
Across the world, girls face adversities that hinder their education, training and entry into the workforce.They have less access to information, communication technology and resources, such as the internet where the global gender gap is growing.
A quarter of young people, most of them girls, are neither employed nor getting an education or training.
This year alone, 12 million girls under 18 will be married, and 21 million girls aged 15 to 19 years will become pregnant in developing regions.
And yet, they persist, they succeed. They are innovating technology to solve global challenges, they are standing up for the environment, they are raising their voices against violence and they are preparing to run for office.
Photo: ONU Femmes/Karin Schermbrucker