Hello everyone! My name is Odelia and I'm 18. I'm from Aileu, Timor-Leste where I live with my family.
I am happy because my parents and family make an effort to support me and my siblings to go to school, because they know that we are the future of this nation.
I have the dream to become the ambassador of Timor-Leste in Australia. I'm very interested in protcting other girls' rights, because I noticed that a lot of girls do not go to school or can't continue their studies due to the fact that they have to contribute to the household economy.
I noticed that a lot of girls do not go to school
As a girl, I feel sad with the problems other girls have to face, and that gives me the courage to fight against such problems, so I participate in an initiative to grant the same rights to education to all children.
In my community, I am the leader of the Group Asaun Labarik ba Mudansa (Action Group of Children for Change) and we develop activities to learn about how to protect children. We also organised public speaking trainings with help from Plan International. Then, we share with other children who still haven't had any training, and we also act as facilitators at school and at suco level and refer childrens' problems to the people responsible for defending their rights.
Because all children should have access to the same rights, especially when it comes to education!
To read this blog post in Tetun, please click here.