Because I Am A Girl (campaign)
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Because I Am a Girl is an international movement by the aid organization
Plan A plan is typically any diagram or list of steps with details of timing and resources, used to achieve an Goal, objective to do something. It is commonly understood as a modal logic, temporal set (mathematics), set of intended actions through wh ...
. The campaign is made to address the issue of gender discrimination around the world."Discrimination against girls 'still deeply entrenched'", ''The Independent'', 15 May 2007, p. 1 The goal of the campaign is to promote the rights of
girl A girl is a young female human, usually a child or an adolescent. While the term ''girl'' has other meanings, including ''young woman'',Dictionary.com, "Girl"'' Retrieved January 2, 2008. '' daughter'' or '' girlfriend'' regardless of age ...
s and bring millions of girls out of
poverty Poverty is a state or condition in which an individual lacks the financial resources and essentials for a basic standard of living. Poverty can have diverse Biophysical environmen ...
around the world. It is part of the organization's broader
international development International development or global development is a broad concept denoting the idea that societies and countries have differing levels of economic development, economic or human development (economics), human development on an international sca ...
work. The campaign focuses on lack of equality faced by girls in developing countries and promotes projects to improve opportunities for girls in
education Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education als ...
, medical care, family planning, legal rights, and other areas.


Campaign goals

Plan International states that the campaign has several current goals, which in 2012 included: *Girls' education to be prioritised by world leaders *Girls' completion of a quality
secondary education Secondary education is the education level following primary education and preceding tertiary education. Level 2 or ''lower secondary education'' (less commonly ''junior secondary education'') is considered the second and final phase of basic e ...
to be a major focus of international action *Funding for girls' education to be increased *An end to
child marriage Child marriage is a practice involving a marriage or domestic partnership, formal or informal, that includes an individual under 18 and an adult or other child.* * * * Research has found that child marriages have many long-term negative co ...
*An end to
gender-based violence Gender-related violence or gender-based violence (GBV) refers to any kind of violence directed against people due to their gender or gender identification, culture may have a role to play, being lower in egalitarianism societies and higher, sexist ...
in and around schools Plan has targeted 4 million girls through direct programs and projects, and has the goal of reaching 40 million girls and boys indirectly through gender programs. Plan has a further goal of positively impacting 400 million girls through lobbying for governmental policy changes.


Origins

The campaign began shortly after Plan International published its first annual report on the state of the world's girls in May 2007, titled "Because I am a Girl". The widely cited report, principally written by Nikki Van der Gaag, compiled and analyzed research into the extent of discrimination against girls worldwide and in the developing world in particular. Violence against girls, forced child marriage, endemic poverty, and many other topics were examined. Plan International developed the Because I am a Girl campaign as an ongoing initiative to launch projects aimed at remedying the challenges faced by girls.


Annual reports

Each year, a ''Because I Am a Girl'' report is released by Plan as an update on the state of the world's girls. The report has been produced annually since 2007. Researchers for the report visit girls throughout the world and summarize their findings in the report. Reports released since 2007: * 2007: The State of World's Girls * 2008: In the Shadows of War * 2009: Girls in the Global Economy: Adding It All Up * 2010: Digital and Urban Frontiers * 2011: Because I am a Girl: So What About the Boys? * 2012: Because I am a Girl: Learning for Life * 2013: In Double Jeopardy: Adolescent Girls and Disasters * 2014: Pathways to Power: Creating Sustainable Change for Adolescent Girls * 2015: The Unfinished Business of Girls' Rights


International activity

Plan International has raised awareness of its campaign through innovative marketing, including a highly visible bus stop poster campaign. Plan International also initiated the
International Day of the Girl Child International Day of the Girl Child is an international observance day declared by the United Nations; it is also called the Day of Girls and the International Day of the Girl. October 11, 2012, was the first Day of the Girl Child. The observat ...
, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly as an annual observance day. The inaugural
International Day of the Girl Child International Day of the Girl Child is an international observance day declared by the United Nations; it is also called the Day of Girls and the International Day of the Girl. October 11, 2012, was the first Day of the Girl Child. The observat ...
was October 11, 2012. Plan International reached 1.1 million kids in the late '90s and as of 2018 it has reached greatly increased to 56.5 million children in more than 50 countries. Plan International's goal is to sponsor kids in impoverished countries so that they have a better chance in life. Plan International USA seeks to make sure that women and girls can manage their menstruation. There is a lot of stigma and one of the main goals is to provide more knowledge about menstruation to both females and males. Plan also works towards providing more access to sanitary products. #GirlsTakeover is a call for action on International Day of the Girl. In the U.S executive directors of UNICEF, UNWomen, and UNFPA were a part of the takeover and advocated for the equality of girls. More than a thousand takeovers were held in 60 different countries all over the world.


Canada

Plan Canada's ''Because I Am a Girl'' initiative created a petition to the Canadian government for a National Day of the Girl. This petition was designed to lobby the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...
for an International Day of the Girl, initially to be observed on September 22. The stated goal was to bring international attention and
awareness In philosophy and psychology, awareness is the perception or knowledge of something. The concept is often synonymous with consciousness. However, one can be aware of something without being explicitly conscious of it, such as in the case of bli ...
on the issue of
gender inequality Gender inequality is the social phenomenon in which people are not treated equally on the basis of gender. This inequality can be caused by gender discrimination or sexism. The treatment may arise from distinctions regarding biology, psychology ...
and allow for girls to obtain their rights. Canada sponsored a resolution in the United Nations General Assembly to observe the
International Day of the Girl Child International Day of the Girl Child is an international observance day declared by the United Nations; it is also called the Day of Girls and the International Day of the Girl. October 11, 2012, was the first Day of the Girl Child. The observat ...
each October 11, a resolution that the UN voted to adopt.


United Kingdom

In a 2009 campaign, celebrity women donated pictures from their childhood, discussed women who inspired them, and gave their thoughts on
human rights Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...
. In 2014, a school girl wrote a poem about forced marriage after discovering the Because I Am a Girl campaign. Her poem was published online by
Plan UK Plan International UK is the UK branch of the global children's rights non-profit organisation Plan International. Plan UK which works to advance equality for girls all over the world through sustainable development and humanitarian response ac ...
.


United States

In 2015,
Mo'ne Davis Mo'ne Ikea Davis (born June 24, 2001) is an American former Little League Baseball pitcher and former Hampton University softball player from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She was one of two girls who played in the 2014 Little League World Serie ...
teamed up with the brand M4D3 (Make A Difference Everyday) to design a line of sneakers for girls, with some of the proceeds going toward the Plan International's Because I Am a Girl campaign.


See also

*
Gender inequality Gender inequality is the social phenomenon in which people are not treated equally on the basis of gender. This inequality can be caused by gender discrimination or sexism. The treatment may arise from distinctions regarding biology, psychology ...
*
International development International development or global development is a broad concept denoting the idea that societies and countries have differing levels of economic development, economic or human development (economics), human development on an international sca ...
* Save girls campaign (Beti Bachao)


References


External links


Plan International Because I Am a Girl campaign

Plan Canada's Because I Am a Girl campaign

Plan Italia Because I am a Girl

Plan Australia's Because I Am A Girl Campaign
{{DEFAULTSORT:Because I Am A Girl (Campaign) International development agencies Feminist organisations in England Human rights organisations based in the United Kingdom