Violence against girls in and around school

“I am trying very hard to forget how it happened, but I am failing. I can’t just forget it; it’s like it’s just about to happen again, like it’s just happening. I remember every detail.” A 15 year old girl in Zambia who was raped by her teacher expresses her emotions. “I have been very much disturbed; emotionally disturbed and very much stressed.”

Every year, between 500 million and 1.5 billion children experience some sort of violence, often within school. This week Plan launches a global report on the scale of violence against girls around the world ahead of International Women’s Day on Friday 8th March.

Læs mere her!

Safer cities: Fear holds girls back

Fear of sexual attacks and violence is creating 'no-go' areas for girls in cities, reveals new research by Plan.

As part of a unique participatory study, over 1,000 adolescent girls in India, Egypt, Peru, Uganda and Vietnam assessed their neighbourhoods and mapped out major obstacles to their safety and inclusiveness.

Watch the clip and see what life is really like for girls living in India's capital city.

My hope on International Women's Day

Megan Tucker, Plan’s Disability Advisor, gives a personal insight into what International Women’s Day means to her. 

This week my three year old daughter told me that she wanted to be both a house painter and a vet to sick puppies when she grows up. Other weeks she wants to be a ballerina or a soccer player. Living in Australia with the opportunities that this affords, in all likelihood she has the opportunity to be any of these and more.

Today is International Women's Day. Today many mothers like me around the world are contemplating what the future holds for their daughters. What will our daughters be when they grow up? For many mothers and daughters in developing countries realising their aspirations will mean facing many challenges.

Læs mere her!

Kvindernes Internationale Kampdag

I dag er det Kvindernes Internationale Kampdag. Og der er masser at kæmpe for, især i verdens fattigste lande. 66 millioner piger går ikke i skole, 150 millioner piger har været udsat for voldtægt, og 10 millioner piger under 18 år tvinges hvert år til at gifte sig.

Specielt i byerne er piger og kvinder udsatte. Selvom piger i byerne har større chance for at få en uddannelse og ofte giftes senere, er frygten stor i de urbane områder. 

Seksuelle overgreb, vold og sexchikane er blot nogle af de trusler, pigerne møder på deres færden gennem byen. Uoplyste gader, blinde hjørner, strejfende hunde og bunker af affald udgør alt sammen en risiko for pigernes sikkerhed.

Læs mere her!

Join our safer cities tweet jam on International Women's Day

What one change would you make to your city to improve safety for all? That’s the question we’ll be asking at Plan International’s Twitter channel on International Women’s Day this year (Friday 8 March).

Girls from across the globe have assessed the safety of their streets for the Adolescent Girls' Views on Safety in Cities report. Plan will release the executive summary of the report on International Women's Day.

Join the global conversation on Twitter between 12:00 and 14:00 GMT on 8 March to share a change you'd like to make to your own city using the #bcimagirl hashtag and your own city's hashtag to converse with people from across the world.

Læs mere her!

Girls speak out at the UN against school violence

Plan-supported girl delegates from around the world are at the United Nations in New York to speak out on girls' rights and highlight violence in schools - one of the biggest barriers girls face in completing an education.

Between 500 million and 1.5 billion children experience violence every year, many within school walls.

Girls are especially vulnerable to rape, exploitation, coercion and discrimination perpetrated by students and teachers. The consequences include unwanted pregnancies, poor performance at school and high dropout rates.

Læs mere her!

Learn Without Fear: Three years on

Three years* after the launch of Plan’s global campaign against violence in schools, now laws and policies are in place to protect 485 million children from corporal punishment, sexual violence and bullying.

The success is one of the highlights in the Learn Without Fear campaign third progress report, which also underlines how violence in schools remains widespread – with 79 countries with laws still allowing teachers to physically punish children.

Violence in schools affects millions of children, physically and psychologically – while communities and economies suffer financially from the subsequent non-attendance, dropping out and poor attainment.

Læs mere her!

*This was published March 2012.