11/10/2023
International day of the Girl child.
On December 19th 2011 resolution 66/170 was passed by the United Nations declaring October 11th as the international day of the girl child.
This year, the theme for our celebration is "Invest in Girls Rights; Our Leadership, our well being".
The girl child faces quite a lot in her bid to survive, grow and develop in today's world. Inequalities, discrimination, poor access to livelihood opportunities, sexual reproductive health issues but mostly our patriarchal society. This makes the girl child unheard, unknown and unprepared to live life more "rewardingly".
I agree with the UN secretary general Antonio Guterres that "women and girls can lead us to a fairer future...let us amplify girls voices and recommit to working together to build a world where every girl can lead and thrive ".
This year, we must make the girls voices to be heard, and very importantly increase opportunities and capacities for them to become economically vibrant and not dependent on anyone. The girl child must be groomed to take leadership roles by involving girl led organizations and individuals in decision making enabling them to also learn and take up this life skill. We can see clearer that when the girl child is given opportunity to participate and lead community development our communities are the better for it.
Happy International day of the girl child to every girl out there. May you be preserved and grow to your fullest potential.