“Save the cheerleaders, save the world.” Either you’re into retro TV or, like me, you were there for the original airing of the show Heros. Whichever is the case, this line from the series became famous.
It’s stayed with me because of its fundamental truth. A focus on girls – supporting them to ensure their basic needs and rights to food and water, education, health care, work and safety – is absolutely key to unlocking global progress on development.
We know this at Plan International, and it’s been borne out in data and analysis from the UN and others.
And yet. Girls are among the groups left out and left most behind in investment and progress on development. And this risk is ever great, with the current freeze to USAID, cuts to aid budgets by the UK and others, and funding being redirected to defence, all significantly impacts lifesaving humanitarian aid and development work.
In partnership with UNICEF and UN Women, we’ve taken stock of global and regional progress for adolescent girls over the past 30 years.
And while some progress has been made, I’m sorry to tell you that the overall news isn’t positive. In fact, it’s alarming.
Despite a modest increase in girls remaining in school over the last 20 years, still 122 million girls remain out of school globally. In South Asia, adolescent girls aged 15-19 are three times more likely than boys to not be in school, employment or training. In terms of literacy, nearly 50 million adolescent girls and young women today are unable to read or write a simple sentence.
And the report goes on. Nearly one in four adolescent girls who have been married or partnered experienced intimate partner violenceworldwide, and 50 million girls alive today have experienced sexual violence, while complications from adolescent girls pregnancy and childbirth account for roughly one in every 23 deaths worldwide.
The numbers themselves are stark but, behind these numbers, are real people: young women, their families and their communities. Their futures.
In these complex and concerning times, where it feels like the dark is growing, I’m challenging myself to find the light. Find it, see it, celebrate it and use to help understand that positive change is possible. It happens all the time. What we need, is more of it.
So, here’s evidence that, despite this harsh report card on the progress to date and ongoing outlook for girls, there is light.
The practice of female genital mutilation is declining, with countries including Burkina Faso and Liberia halving the share of girls subjected to the practice over the last 30 years.
Girls today are less likely tomarryunder the age of 18, compared to 25 years ago with the most progress made in South Asia.
Globally, the number of adolescent girls giving birth has nearly halved over the past 30 years.
And here’s more light: over recent months, while we’ve been seeing rollbacks in commitments to women rights, equality and safety around the world, and increasing toxic rhetoric, Australia has drawn important lines in the sand about our commitment.
Our government has released two key policy documents to guide Australia’s international engagement – a Humanitarian Policy and an International Gender Equality Strategy. Both documents are unequivocal about Australia’s commitment to gender equality and women’s rights. Both documents prioritise engagement and support on sexual and reproductive health rights and recognise the particular impacts on women and girls of climate change.
That’s the good news. But the room for improvement is that both documents are somewhat ‘girl blind’. They focus on women, or ‘women and girls’ to the detriment of a particular understanding of the differing experiences and needs of girls. And that is to their detriment and to the detriment of the girls we seek to support.
And critically, these documents will mean little, and make little impact, unless they’re backed by the resources to realise their ambition. Currently, no new funding has been announced to support the important priorities outlined but this will be essential.
With many other people and organisations, Plan is calling for Australia’s international development funding to be increased to a modest 1% of our national budget. While a fairly marginal amount in our overall budget, this increase would have a huge impact in supporting Australia’s international objectives and priorities. In supporting girls, their families and their communities.
Our new report in just the latest unequivocal evidence that a focus on girls is absolutely required in order to reach them, to support them and so to unlock development and progress for all.
So, ‘save the cheerleaders, save the world’. I’m here for it. Are you?