Her voice will bring change
PR Newswire
BRUSSELS, 11 October 2021
BRUSSELS, 11 October 2021 / PRN Africa / — Girls have the right to a safe, educated, and healthy life, not only during their critical formative years, but also as they mature into women. If effectively supported during the adolescent years, girls have the potential to change the world – both as the empowered girls of today and as tomorrow’s workers, mothers, entrepreneurs, mentors, household heads, and political leaders.
The EU joins the UN in marking the 2021 International Day of the Girl Child. This day aims to highlight and address the needs and challenges girls face, while promoting girls’ empowerment and the fulfilment of their human rights.
The theme for this year’s International Day of the Girl Child is “My Voice, Our Equal Future”(link is external) providing the opportunity to learn and be inspired by what adolescent girls see as the change they want, the solutions – big and small – they are leading and demanding across the globe. The EU is active in Brussels and around the world to mark the day and promote our ongoing investment in equal rights and opportunities.
The EU’s commitment to promote, protect, fulfil and respect the rights of the child is a global commitment. The new comprehensive EU Strategy on the Rights of the Child and the European Child Guarantee were adopted in May 2021 to better protect all children, to help them fulfil their rights and to place them right at the centre of EU policy making. Through this strategy, the EU aims to further strengthen its position as a key global player in protecting and supporting children around the world. The EU is instrumental in strengthening access to education, services, health, and in protecting them from all forms of violence, abuse and neglect. The situation of girls is particularly difficult with millions continuing to be victims of discrimination and gender-based violence.
The new EU Gender Action Plan adopted in November (GAP III) addresses the rights of the girl, particularly by calling for the elimination of harmful practices, such as Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), child, early and forced marriage, and gender-biased sex selection.
The EU continues supporting two global programmes addressing child, early and forced marriage and FGM:
In April, the Spotlight Africa Regional Programme (link is external)was signed in Addis Ababa with an overall budget of EUR 30 million which includes supporting the regional response to prevent harmful practices, focusing specifically on FGM and child marriage. Through these programs the EU supports actions to challenge harmful social norms at grassroots level with the strong engagement of girls and women, as well as boys and men.
In August, the Commission adopted a Decision to support the continuation of the Global Programme to Prevent Son Preference and Gender-biased Sex Selection(link is external): Improving the sex ratio at birth in the Caucasus (EUR 2 million). The action will contribute to strengthening evidence-based national policies and programmes in addressing son preference and gender inequalities resulting in gender-biased sex selection in Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia.
Both programs contribute to ending harmful practices by focusing in particular on comprehensive approaches to education and empowerment of girls, sexual and reproductive health and rights, justice and participation.
The International Day for the Girl Child also sees the kick off of the European Week of Action for Girls(link is external), whose goal is to ensure girls’ voices and aspirations are heard by the EU institutions, and that girls’ rights are at the core of the EU’s external action. The EEAS Ambassador for Gender and Diversity Stella Ronner-Grubačić and Ambassador to the African Union Brigitte Markussen are taking part by engaging with girl activists from Europe and Africa, to hear their voices to strengthen the EU-Africa partnership and put girls and children’s rights and aspiration at the heart of our joint work.
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SOURCE European External Action