05/10/2026
Some conversations are too important to have only once a year.
This October, as we mark the International Day of the Girl, I’m choosing to speak about something that has been on my heart for a long time: the future of girls.
Around the world, too many girls are still growing up in circumstances where decisions about their lives are made for them, including decisions about when they should marry, whether they get to remain in school, and what their future is allowed to look like.
A girl should not have to choose between her childhood and becoming a bride.
She should have the opportunity to learn.
To dream.
To grow.
To discover herself.
And to decide what she wants her future to be.
The United Nations’ theme for this year’s International Day of the Girl calls on us to end child marriage and invest in girls’ rights.
At Kelsies Foundation, we are taking that call and turning it into a message:
SAY NO TO CHILD BRIDES. YES TO HER EDUCATION.
This campaign is not about telling girls what their lives should look like.
It is about protecting their right to have a choice.
It is about creating environments where a girl can remain in school instead of being pushed into marriage.
It is about investing in her education, her safety, her health, her voice and her dreams.
And for me, this is deeply personal.
Our 100 School Bags for 100 Girls project was one small expression of that belief. We put school bags into the hands of 100 girls across two communities because sometimes investing in a girl begins with something as simple as helping her show up to school prepared.
But a school bag is only a beginning.
There is so much more to do.
From October 7th to October 18th, I’ll be using my platform, alongside Kelsies Foundation, to start conversations, share stories, educate, challenge harmful norms and explore what it really means to invest in girls.
I want us to talk about child marriage.
I want us to talk about education.
I want us to talk about the rights girls deserve.
And most importantly, I want us to talk about the kind of future we are creating for the next generation of African girls.
Because she is not just someone’s future wife.
She is a girl with a future of her own.
Her childhood matters.
Her rights matter.
Her education matters.
Her future matters.
So this October, I’m asking you to join us.
Say no to child brides.
Yes to her education. 🌸
Let her learn.
Let her dream.
Let her become.
