Explore our interactive graphic to get a sample of their views.
'The Unfinished Business of Girls’ Rights' brings together 14 prominent voices – including model and campaigner Liya Kebede, journalist and author Mariane Pearl, former Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard and former US President Jimmy Carter – hailing progress, but lamenting the fact that girls still face huge challenges.
“There is still no country in the world where there is real gender equality,” notes stateswoman Graça Machel.
Threshold moment for girls' rights
This is a threshold moment, the contributors write, where the gains made in maternal mortality, female education and legal protection under the umbrella of the Millennium Development Goals can be built upon by the Sustainable Development Goals, which have gender equality at their centre.
There is still no country in the world where there is real gender equality
The authors suggest 2015 could be the first year in history that forward momentum for girls and women’s rights is not immediately followed by a backlash. But without economic empowerment and equitable education, no further gains can be made.
