On this International Day of the Girl Child (IDG) 2018, CSI celebrates amazing girls who held onto their dreams long enough to achieve them and become GirlForces in their families, communities, and country. Happy International Day of the Girl Child!
“A woman’s ability to determine what to do with her body, her life, and her future determines her reality.” – Global Fund for Women CEO & President, Musimbi Kanyoro. Every great idea begins with just an inkling of the possibility of what could be. It is through education that we are able to shape our ideas, hone our vision, and create a new reality. We are empowered through education: personally, socially and economically. For adolescent girls, a quarter of whom remain unenrolled in formal school or vocational training internationally, education can change their world! On IDG 2018, the United Nations, advocates for girls education, partner organizations including CSI bring focus to the power of education and the impact it has on the lives of girls and women. We know that girls anywhere in the world who are able to remain in school beyond their primary years are less likely to get married or to become pregnant during adolescence. Personal agency and financial stability are achievable when girls stay in school longer and attain higher levels of education. When personal agency and financial stability are achieved, girls and women are then able to start their own businesses, seek jobs they desire, and that pay sufficiently to meet their needs. They are also empowered to delay marriage and postpone pregnancy to a time of their choosing, which prevents common health complications associated with early childbirth and unintended pregnancies. The United Nations has themed IDG 2018 as “With Her: A Skilled GirlForce”, highlighting the estimated 600 million adolescent girls who—due to limited resources and limited formal education—will soon enter a workforce for which they are not sufficiently prepared. Cultural practices, perspectives, and menstruation (due to limited access to feminine hygiene products) are common barriers to sustaining education for school-aged girls; without access to the appropriate resources and a national commitment to universal secondary education, female enrollment tends to drop off significantly by the start of secondary school. This trend is less prominent in their male counterparts. Without formal or vocational education, the personal agency and financial stability of women and girls wane, perpetuating gender inequalities and violence against women and girls who are often relegated to low- or non-paying positions. Since IDG 2017, CSI has continued working to empower girls and women by providing access to resources and opportunities that eliminate barriers to achieving higher education. This year, CSI’s Girl Talk, Girl Power program launched in Baltimore City, Maryland! The program, which has served over 4,000 girls in Tanzania and Uganda from the time of its inception in 2014, provides feminine hygiene products to those without access, educates girls on preventing HIV/STIs, emphasizes the importance of higher education, and addresses a variety of “taboo” topics, all in one safe environment for girls. For more information on the Girl Talk, Girl Power Baltimore program, check out CSI's QII Newsletter. Keeping the momentum high for women and girls, in January 2018, CSI had the distinct honor of launching the Youth Entrepreneurship Scholarship (YES) program. The YES program currently sponsors the vocational education and mentorship of girls forced to drop out of school and gives them the opportunity to re-learn and acquire essential literacy skills, supporting UN’s IDG 2018 mission to build a “skilled girl force”. CSI's first cohort of girls graduated on October 10, 2018 celebrating IDG2018 with optimism for a great future and to pay if forward. With the upcoming 63rd UN Commission on the Status of Women in March 2019, girls who graduated from Namasuba College of Commerce will have the opportunity to share their stories, impact of CSI's program, and advocate for social protection systems to empower their sisters around the world. In the coming months and year, through the power of collaboration, advocacy, and education, CSI looks forward to continue advancing opportunities for girls and women in underserved communities to discover the possibilities that are within reach. Happy International Day of the Girl Child 2018! By Kimberly Sarvis, CSI Blog Writer
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