Child rights: Plan International unveils $1bn global strategy for 200m girls

Plan International, a non-governmental organisation, has unveiled a one billion US dollars global strategy fund targeting 200 million girls to address problems affecting children’s rights.

The Chief Executive Officer of the organisation, Mr Stephen Omollo said this in Abuja on Monday at the Global Strategy Launch 2022-2027 with the theme “Girls Standing Strong to make global change”.

He said that societies thrived when girls learn, noting that tremendous impact would be seen if attention was given to the girl child rights in the area of education and health.

According to him, in Nigeria, the organisation is looking at how to expand its reach and work with the broadcast partnership and grow investment to work with young people.

“We are here in Nigeria to launch this global strategy, which really pleases us as Plan International working with partners, and in Nigeria to progress the issue and advance children’s rights and equality for girls.

“We are here to discuss issues on how can we together accompany the Government of Nigeria, the people of Nigeria, to say that we can address the humanitarian context in the country and address issues that impact on children.

“We have an investment plan. We have just launched what we call the Global Girls Foundation, which is an investment plan to grow more income, and to reach more girls.

“Globally; we want to reach 200 million girls. With assistance, we want to ensure that girls learn, lead, that girls can decide and that girls thrive,” he said.

According to him, the global investment strategy is a five-year programme targeting 200 million girls, and urged donors to support the course to address issues affecting girl child.

He said the programme was designed to enhance girls access to quality education, sexual and reproductive health and rights.

He further commended the supportive role of the Federal Government to achieve this feat.

Also, the Country Director, Plan International in Nigeria, Mr Charles Usie said that about 15 million girls have been targeted under the programme across the country.

He said the strategy would bring new focus to girls and young people in meaningful ways in building their capacities to tackle the issues they face, especially girls.

The strategy, he said, would help articulate what would be done for girls in the area of education, healthcare, livelihood, protection, water and sanitation, among others.

“This strategy is going to guide everything we do globally. In Nigeria, we will align our strategy to the global strategy.

“Nigeria is one of our biggest country programme worldwide. Now, in the previous strategy, we had a target of 100 million girls and from that target, Nigeria was responsible for reaching 10 million girls, which is 10 per cent of the global targets.

“In this new strategy, starting from 2022, in the target of 200 million girls, Nigerian may likely get as much as 10 or 15 million girls as a target for the next five years.

“So the new strategy brings a new focus to girls and young people in meaningful ways. And by this we mean we want to in the next five years, build strength in the movement of young people or girls to tackle the issues that young people face particularly young girls,” he said.

The Minister of Women Affairs, Mrs Pauline Tallen promised to continue to promote the rights of the girl child in the country.

Represented by the Director, Child Development Department of the ministry, Mr Ali Madugu, the Minister said the budget for the ministry would henceforth include budget line for girls’ education.

She reiterated commitment to collaborate with the organisation to enhance protection of child rights, adding the ministry had been engaging the organisation on its programmes.

“And we can see that they are not also concerned with only the Nigerian girls, but they are trying to expose them to the international issues so that Nigerian girls will learn from them and also build their capacity and build their future,” she said.

For his part, Chairman of the Board, Plan International, Mrs Gunvor Kronman said that past initiatives of the organisation had succeeded and expressed optimism that the new initiative would yield perfect results at the end of the five-year programme.

She said that the organisation would work with local communities to address the humanitarian needs in the country.