PURPOSE: On December 19, 2011, United Nations General Assembly adopted Resolution 66/170 to declare 11 October as the International Day of the Girl Child, to recognize girls’ rights and the unique challenges girls face around the world. The Day focuses attention on the need to address the challenges girls face and to promote girls’ empowerment and the fulfilment of their human rights. Girls are leaders. Girls are change-makers. Adolescent girls have the right to a safe, educated, and healthy life, not only during these 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, entrepreneurs, mentors, household heads, political leaders and mothers. An investment in realising the power of adolescent girls upholds their rights today and promises a more equitable and prosperous future, one in which half of humanity is an equal partner in solving the problems of climate change, political conflict, economic growth, disease prevention, and global sustainability. Girls are driving good and growth around the world. They are a fundamental source of transformational change for gender equality, and technology is a crucial tool to support their work, activism and leadership.
FORUM: "Invest in Girls' Rights: Our Leadership, Our Well-being." International Day of the Girl 2023. This year, at a time when we are seeing a range of movements and actions to curtail girls’ and women’s rights and roll back progress on gender equality, we see particularly harsh impacts on girls. From maternal health care and parenting support for adolescent mothers, to digital and life skills training; from comprehensive sexuality education to survivor support services and violence prevention programmes; there is an urgent need for increased attention and resourcing for the key areas that enable girls to realize their rights and achieve their full potential. Responding to girls’ calls for change, the global community must move beyond reaffirming commitments and invest boldly in the action needed to make that change. When we pay attention, we see that, already, many girls are championing solutions and change in their communities. Together with our government and civil society partners, UNICEF envisions a world where girls have space to shape government policy and spending to inform the rules and norms by which businesses should operate, and to direct the priorities for new research and innovations. These examples should not be novelties, but the norm. Participate tothe IDG global platform to advocate for the full spectrum of girls’ rights. Follow the conversation with the hashtags: #GirlchildDay, #11october, #InternationalDayoftheGirlChild.
EVENTS: The year 2023 marks the 11th anniversary of the International Day of the Girl. In these last 10 years, there has been increased attention on issues that matter to girls amongst governments, policymakers and the general public, and more opportunities for girls to have their voices heard on the global stage. On October 11, 2023 to observe the International Day of the Girld Child 2023, a webinar will be organized with Plan International and other partners, Topics of the Discussions will be on opportunities for improving resourcing to girls and the issues that affect them. We hope you will be able to join us wherever you are, with and for girls. Register to participate and Watch the 11th Annual IDG Summit!
INITIATIVES: UNICEF and partners call for a $1 billion increase in investments for adolescent girls. Targeted and evidence-based investments in key areas that promote girls’ leadership and well-being are needed to secure their rights and development – in every setting and context. It is imperative to increase funding in key areas, including girls' health, education, violence prevention, and economic empowerment. Such investments represent a critical step to realize girls’ rights under the Convention of the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). Moreover, the international community will not meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and their targets without investing in adolescent girls who, when supported, deliver returns and powerful change for girls themselves, their families, communities and societies.
HOW TO GET INVOLVED: The UNICEF, governments and civil society partners from October 2023 – October 2024, collectively call for global stakeholders to:
Centre girls in the protection and promotion of rights.
Recognize, celebrate and support girls' leadership.
Introduce and scale up multi-sectoral programmes that support adolescent girls' well-being.
Ensure information, services and systems meaningfully change to be adolescent-girl-friendly.
Make structural changes to scale up funding for girls (and not as a one-off).
PODCASTS: Girls around the world continue to face unprecedented challenges to their education, their physical and mental wellness, and the protections needed for a life without violence. Listen to the podcasts!
CAMPAIGN MATERIALS: Join the “Invest in Girls' Rights: Our Leadership, Our Well-being.” Campaign. Girls are ready for a decade of acceleration forward. It is time for us all to stand accountable – with and for girls – and to invest in a future that believes in their agency, leadership and potential. Explore the Girl Child Day 2023 Poster and Get the communication materials!
WHY WE CELEBRATE THE DAY?
HOW TO GET INVOLVED!
PARTNERSHIPS:
The United Nations General Assembly declared October 11th as the International Day of the Girl Child, to recognize girls’ rights and the unique challenges girls face around the world. During the day, we focus attention on the need to address the challenges girls face and to promote girls’ empowerment and the fulfilment of their human rights.
The support of young girls, their training and their full ability to make their voices and ideas heard are drivers for sustainable development and peace. In too many cases across the globe, teenage girls drop out of school, due to forced marriages or child labor.
Ways to get involved
Share human interest stories, blogs and videos of girl changemakers, and the inspiring networks and organizations that are resourcing girls, letting girls lead, and strengthening services for girls. Let’s collectively amplify their leadership, actions, and impact to inspire others.
Engage government officials, policymakers and stakeholders to make more targeted investments that tackle inequalities experienced by girls, especially while accessing mental health and psychosocial support services in the face of conflict, forced migration, natural disasters, and the effects of climate change.
Engage key female influencers across industries to be the face of change we want girls to see as possible. Role models speak a thousand words. Let’s change the global conversation and public perception of girl leaders.
Amplify your commitment to raising awareness about and addressing factors that hold girls in your country and region back.
The International Day of the Girl Child is hosted by the UNESCO, the UN-WOMEN, the International Labour Organization, the UNFPA-UNICEF, the World Bank,The Spotlight Initiative
With the participation on Civil society Organizations, Non-Governmental Organizations and Researchers and academics.