A united Kingdom-based and Founder of WOVII, Dr. (Mrs.) Felicia Stephen-Okoye and her colleagues celebrated with Girl Child in Anara community of Anambra State and Langbasa community, Ajah, Lagos State to commemorate the 10th anniversary of International Day of the Girl (IDG) 2022.
In her opening remarks to commemorate the occasion, Dr. Stephen-Okoye said:
Excerpts
Today, we have gathered to honour God and to celebrate International Day of the Girl Child. This year, the world is commemorating the 10th anniversary of the International Day of the Girl (IDG). In these last 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.
For us in Nigeria, we have seen how extreme poverty, social stigma and legislation such as child marriages and cultural practices such as female genital mutilation further complicate the plight of the girl child.
WOVII is an International Women organisation that was founded to advocate for, build capacity and provide education and resources to the most marginalized in society, with a major focus on women and girls. It is our belief that by championing education and capacity building we can improve the lives of young women across this nation and continue to make positive ripple effects in widening access to skills based learning and opportunity.
With adversity, comes resourcefulness, creativity, tenacity, and resilience. The world’s 600 million adolescent girls have shown time and time again that given the skills and the opportunities, they can be the change makers driving progress in their communities, building back stronger for all, including women, boys and men.
Girls are ready for a decade of acceleration forward. It is time for us all to stand accountable – with and for girls– and to invest in a future that believes in their agency, leadership and potential.
