Being a girl shouldn’t determine what you can do, where you can go or who you can become.

Being a girl shouldn’t determine what you can do, where you can go or who you can become. But right now, that is the reality for millions of girls across the world. Too many are being left behind, confronted by extreme challenges that deny girls their rights, restrict their choices and limit their future.

The facts

• Today, one in five young women aged between 20 and 24 years were married as children.
• Nearly one in four partnered/married adolescent girls have experienced sexual or physical abuse.
• Globally, 75% of new HIV infections among adolescents occur in girls.
• One in three adolescent girls suffer from anaemia, which is a form of malnutrition.
• Almost double the number of adolescent girls (one in four) compared to boys are not in any form of education, employment or training.   

Yet it is possible to change this. There are proven solutions for accelerating progress towards a future in which every girl can obtain the quality health care, education and skills she needs to succeed. Being a girl shouldn’t determine what you can do, where you can go or who you can become. But right now, that is the reality for millions of girls across the world. Too many are being left behind, confronted by extreme challenges that deny girls their rights, restrict their choices and limit their future.