EU Office Blogs

Last week was a historic week for girls’ rights and for Plan International. On the eve of the International Day of the Girl, global leaders, celebrities and young activists gathered here in Brussels to launch Girls Get Equal – the world’s biggest girl-led campaign for gender equality. Our message was simple: that we will not stop until every girl is equally seen, heard and valued. That together, we will champion the power and activism of young people to advance girls’ rights and gender equality around the world.

When I last contributed to the Girls’ Rights Gazette back in 2014, I stated that “women remain under-represented in our parliaments”. Since then, the European Parliament has seen a slight increase in its number of female members, going from 34,9 to 36,1 percent of seats held by women. This relatively low number is telling of the fact that even though girls and women make up approximately 50 percent of the global population, that share isn’t reflected in seats in Parliaments or other decision-making positions – in either public or private institutions. The under-representation of women in such positions in turn affects the type of policies that come out of these spaces. The European Union is no exception. I have been calling and will continuing to call for the EU to step up gender mainstreaming all its policies, programmes and funding. Regardless of the many commitments made to tackle gender inequalities, including women’s access to leadership positions, there is still a long way for the EU to go.

Because it is the International Day of the Girl in exactly four weeks from now, we are returning, this year digitally, with our Girls’ Rights Gazette. As of 2012 this publication is bringing girls’ voices to the fore: their stories, their realities and their views on the current state of girls’ rights in the world today. This year’s gazette will include stories by our young activists and advocates who will be joining our Global Girls’ Summit in Brussels on 10th October. They will give insight into their commitment to gender equality and girls’ rights and the different initiatives they are carrying out in their respective countries and regions. You will be able to see how the different Plan International projects work together with girls and young women, to make their cities safer, to ensure education in emergency settings and to become champions of change. There will be photos in each issue of the Gazette taken by the youth involved in the BruxELLES project capturing sexual harassment in public spaces in Brussels. As in past editions, EU leaders and influencers will share their visions on how, in their respective roles, they try to put girls at the forefront of EU external policies and actions. And how they play their part in making sure that every girl can learn, lead, decide and thrive.

I have lived all my life in a community where girls are usually seen and not heard. Most times, when girls are featured in the news, it is because something has been done to them or for them… not by them. At the age of 13, I was selected to join the Nigerian Children’s Parliament having been nominated by my government studies teacher. This exposure has defined the work I do today. I began engaging in grassroots advocacy for child rights – with laser focus on issues affecting girls like access to education and female genital mutilation.

What does having a job mean to you? We asked young people from four countries during a Global Cafe at the European Development Days 2017. Here's what they had to say...

Flavia, 15, from Brazil, shares her views and ideas on girls' economic empowerment in a guest blog for Girls' Voices.

Rixt, 20, from The Netherlands wants to see more women in power in her country.

While we celebrate the power of young people, we must not forget to stand by them and work to bring down the obstacles standing in the way of their empowerment

Laal bibi, 16, from Pakistan knows firsthand what it is like for girls her age to face a disaster like floods. She shares her experience, hopes and ideas in a blog written for #GirlsVoices. "I want to learn how to help my community when the next floods hit our village," she says.

6 February 2016: Madina Bocoum Daff leads Plan International Mali’s projects against female genital mutilation and cutting. In a guest blog for #GirlsVoices, she explains how if working together, we can end FGM in a generation.

The Dutch must grasp their opportunity at the helm of the EU and demonstrate real leadership on girls' rights, argues Monique van ‘t Hek, National Director of Plan Netherlands.

June 19, 2014: When I meet with 48-year-old Kumari Ghadei, tears run down her face as she recalls with horror the night cyclone Phailin struck her village in Odisha last October, blogs Aftab Alam, Cash Transfer in Emergencies Specialist.

Alexandra Makaroff, Head of Plan International EU Office, reflects on recent commitments to the world's girls and calls for the EU to help ensure ambitious words translate into concrete actions.

Education isn' t just a right, it's a vehicle to greater opportunity, argues 23 year old Aida, from Senegal, in a guest blog for #GirlsVoices.

September 15, 2015: Millions of children's futures are still at risk as EU ministers fail to address the scale of the Syrian refugee crisis, blogs Plan International's Tanya Cox.

May 6, 2015: A sobering, even bleak, picture was painted by the team evaluating the implementation of the EU’s first Gender Action Plan, says Tanya Cox.

With the UN Secretary-General’s synthesis report due to be released in December, discussions on the post-2015 agenda are in full swing as stakeholders from all sides try to agree on the whys and wherefores of the future framework.

This is it! The negotiations on the EU’s 2014-2020 budget – a notoriously long and complicated process – are almost over. What a three years it has been…

On 7-8 February, EU leaders celebrated reaching agreement over the bloc’s long-term budget. But while they are patting themselves on the back for reaching “the best possible agreement for everyone”, is that really what they’ve achieved? Is this deal one worth cheering?

Girls’ rights are not often the centre of attention. In fact, more often than not, the discrimination and abuse girls around the world are subjected to goes unnoticed and unpunished. Ignored, just like girls themselves. Young and female, they are among the most disadvantaged people on the planet.