Because I am a Girl Campaign to Protect Girls’ Rights

Poverty, lack of education, child labor, early marriage, HIV/AIDs-- these are intricately interrelated spheres. Poverty is a leading cause of school dropout for girls, which often leads directly to child labor. The lack of education leaves a girl unaware of how to protect herself from HIV and vulnerable to child marriage. Furthermore, a girl who is forced into early marriage with an older, more sexually experienced male faces an increased likelihood of contracting HIV. In sub-Saharan Africa, adolescent girls between the ages of 15-19 are 2-6 times more likely to contract HIV than boys. Complex problems require a complex approach, and these issues must all be addressed in order to truly effect a change for the world’s girls.

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Female Commune Leader is a Sanitation Champion

Mrs. Eng is the leader of the Sokong commune which is situated along the Mekong River in Kong Meas district, Kampong Cham province.

As commune leader, Mrs. Eng promotes and supports good governance in her commune and helps with the management and use of existing resources in a sustainable way while also serving the common interests of the local community. Prior to becoming a commune leader, Mrs. Eng was an active commune council member tending to the women-focused social affairs of the commune.

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The fight against female genital mutilation in Mali

When she was a girl, Kadi dreamt of having a husband and family. She never thought her journey into married life would cause her so much suffering, and certainly never imagined it would be life threatening.

Kadi lives in the rural village of Tingolé, roughly 90km east of the Malian capital, Bamako. As a young girl, she underwent the practice of excision, or female genital mutilation (FGM), and went on to suffer the consequences.

“They destroyed my body through this abominable practice, I have been through hell”

Experiencing major problems giving birth to her children, excessive abdominal bleeding and days of paralysis, Kadi very nearly lost her life. 

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Learn Without Fear: Sexual violence

The World Health Organization estimates that 150,000,000 girls and 73,000,000 boys have been raped or suffered other forms of sexual violence. But there are no reliable estimates of how much of this abuse takes place in schools.

However, we do know that sexual violence is usually carried out by people known to the child and that school-based sexual abuse is a major problem in many countries.

Girls are at greater risk of sexual violence at school, sometimes directed at them by both male teachers and students. Studies in Africa and Latin America have found that some girls are coerced into sexual acts by teachers who threaten them with poor grades if they do not cooperate.

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Child-friendly Latrines Improve Hygiene, Health, and Safety

Out of the 20 schools that were in the Nuwaragampalatha division, 6 had did not have toilets and 7 were without any kind of water supply. Without water systems to safely dispose of solid and liquid waste, many students suffered from poor health and were forced to drop out of school.

As a solution, Plan worked with the local communities to design and implement new sanitation programs. These programs would not only lead to the construction of new bathroom facilities, but it would also cultivate hygienic and sanitary environments for both schools and the entire communities.

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Let It Bee

Beekeeping Creates Buzz for Ethiopian Honey Farmers

Four Hundred and thirty-five miles north of Addis Ababa, the route climbs into a harsh, mountainous landscape where ancient rock-hewn churches appear out of nowhere. This area is known as Lallibela.

Some of Ethiopia’s best honey producers can be found in Lallibela where high-altitude bees whip up a prized white honey that can only be made from the flowers which blossom on this region’s most vertiginous peaks. The bees and their keepers are part of an ancient honey-making tradition that dates back to medieval times.

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Infographic: The impact of girls’ education

There are 66 million girls around the world out of school and even more who struggle every day to remain where they belong – in the classroom.

In some developing countries, girls’ education is not considered a priority. But a quality education can dramatically change the lives of girls – and everyone around them.

An education will shape the values and opportunities of individual girls. But, educating girls has also been proven to help break the cycle of poverty within those girls’ families and communities.

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