On October 11th every year, Uganda joins the rest of the world to celebrate the international Day of the Girl Child, this year’s celebrations mark the 10th anniversary of this day since it was declared by the United Nations General Assembly.
According to the United Nations, the purpose of this day is to increase attention towards girls who are vulnerable to discrimination.
This year’s celebrations are being held under the theme, “Our time is now—our rights, our future.”
The International Day of the Girl child, also referred to as the Day of Girls, is observed to draw awareness to the gender inequality that girls confront all around the world.
On this day, United Nations and other non governmental organisations host conferences and discussions on a variety of topics, including child marriage, violence against women, access to education, and more. In addition, this day hopes to motivate girls to reach their greatest potential by sharing the stories of changemakers.
According the the UN, in the past 10 years, there has been increased attention on issues that matter to girls amongst governments, policymakers and the general public, and more opportunities for girls to have their voices heard on the global stage. Yet, investments in girls’ rights remain limited and girls continue to confront a myriad of challenges to fulfilling their potential;
Made worse by concurrent crises of climate change, COVID-19 and humanitarian conflict. Girls around the world continue to face unprecedented challenges to their education, their physical and mental wellness, and the protections needed for a life without violence. COVID-19 has worsened existing burdens on girls around the world and worn away important gains made over the last decade.
Here in Uganda, girls still face challenges like defilement, forced marriages, early pregnancy among others. In 2022, Uganda registered 6,530 teenage pregnancies.
Similarly UNICEF says,
“investments in girls’ rights remain limited and girls continue to confront a myriad of challenges to fulfilling their potential; made worse by concurrent crises of climate change, Covid-19, and humanitarian conflict.”
