The first of many stories: A young journalist tells all
Small steps, big changes
How often do you change your toothbrush?
To some, this might seem like a silly question, but it actually tells a lot about the inequalities many Filipino children are facing.
The challenge of COVID-19 in the Sahel and how to achieve lasting progress for girls and young women
The COVID-19 pandemic is unravelling decades of progress on girls' equality. To stop the setback, Plan International is working hard in different regions of the world to ensure girls, young women, children and marginalised groups are protected and supported as the COVID-19 crisis unfolds. With the EU being among the main donors in humanitarian aid, we wanted to understand from our colleagues how the pandemic is unfolding in their regions and what they believe could be done for girls and young women in their region.
‘The impact of COVID19 on the already poor and marginalised people will require particular attention. As it has been done in the past months, it is fundamental to continue to provide better knowledge on the COVID-19 disease and its symptoms to build up a resilient community with youth-led prevention and responses.’ says Dr. Fatoumata Haidara, Director for the Sahel Region for Plan International. Moreover, she adds ‘in light of the consequences of the pandemic on girls’ lives, it is a priority to ensure safety for them and to provide alternative and secure sexual and reproductive health services for the most affected adolescent women in the COVID-19 context’.
Welcome back! Ready, set, stop the setback for girls’ equality
A blog by Serap Altinisik on what the EU can do for girls
It’s that time of the year again: La Rentrée. But this year it looks rather different. This year we are returning to school and our workplaces masked and 2m apart. Despite interrupted holiday plans, I am returning to work re-energised and with renewed motivation. I am ready to push harder and be bolder than ever over the coming months to try prevent the undoing of decades of progress in girls’ equality due to COVID-19.
COVID-19 has laid bare the inequalities entrenched in our system, a system that fails to protect the most marginalised and that collapses when crisis hits. A system in which girls and adolescent girls are disproportionately exposed to risk, and were hit the hardest by COVID-19. Interrupted education and lack of protection systems mean they take on household tasks and caring roles; they risk early, child and forced marriage; and they face abuse and violence, including female genital mutilation. But despite all this, I have heard many great stories on how girls and young women have raised their voices all over the world to lead their communities through the crisis.
Serap Altinisik
Hear it from the Girls – continuing our mission for girls’ equality despite of COVID-19 in the Asia-Pacific region
The COVID-19 pandemic is unravelling decades of progress on girls' equality. To stop the setback, Plan International is working hard in different regions of the world to ensure girls, young women, children and marginalised groups are protected and supported as the COVID-19 crisis unfolds. With the EU being among the main donors in humanitarian aid, we wanted to understand from our colleagues how the pandemic is unfolding in their regions and what they believe could be done for girls and young women in their region.
‘When the COVID-19 pandemic arrived to the region back in January 2020, Plan International Asia-Pacific has been on the ground to respond to the situation. Our priority has been to identify and analyse the impact of the pandemic on the local population and, in particular, on the lives of girls and women’ say Vanda Lengkong, Head of Disaster Risk Management, and Krista Zimmerman, Regional Head of Influencing and Policy. Moreover, they add ‘the crisis has challenged us to adapt quickly and to deliver our work despite the changing context and limitations. So far, we have been able to reach more than 18 million people in the whole Asia-Pacific region, 50% of those recipients being women and girls. An important aspect of our response is that it aims to be gender-transformative even in this challenging situation’.
As a result of the support received from, among others the EU, the Plan International Asia-Pacific offices has been able to play a significant role when it comes to the prevention and mitigation of the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact. It allowed them to address the needs of girls, young women and their family preventing sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), protecting children and providing psycho-social assistant to entire communities.
We wanted to know from our colleagues in the Asia-Pacific Office what matters most according to them in their region when it comes to overcoming COVID-19 and possible setbacks for girls’ equality. In the upcoming weeks, we will be talking to many more Plan International colleagues, to get a sense of their priorities and their ways of coping with the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
How COVID-19 deeply affects the world in which girls grow up in Latin America and the Caribbean
An interview with Gerrit Saen, Amalia Alarcón and Nicolas Rodriguez, Plan International, on the challenges in Latin America and the Caribbean and how to overcome them
The COVID-19 pandemic is unravelling decades of progress on girls' equality. To stop the setback, Plan International is working hard in different regions of the world to ensure girls, young women, children and marginalised groups are protected and supported as the COVID-19 crisis unfolds. With the EU being among the main donors in humanitarian aid, we wanted to understand from our colleagues how the pandemic is unfolding in their regions and what they believe could be done for girls and young women in their region.
‘Plan International’s regional office working in Latin America and the Caribbean is not only prioritising migrant and refugee populations affected by the crisis, but also less visible problems such as gender-based violence, child marriage and early pregnancies’ – say Gerrit Saen, Regional Head of Business Development, Amalia Alarcón, Regional Head of Gender Transformative Programming & Influencing and Nicolas Rodriguez, Regional Head of DRM with whom we spoke on the main priorities they see whilst the COVID-19 crisis evolves in the region.
What it takes to be a community’s #RealLifeHero during COVID-19
How youth groups can claim power digitally during COVID-19
COVID-19 has smashed the status quo: young people must now raise their voices in digital decision-making spaces.
How girls are taking the lead during COVID-19
The world has been turned upside down by the COVID-19 crisis but in these unprecedented times, we have once again been shown who runs the world… girls!
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