Shape the Future by Changing the Present for 600 Million Girls

There are more than 600 million adolescent girls living on the planet today — 600 million future leaders, entrepreneurs and advocates. 

Gender disparities create barriers that keep girls from fully participating in society and economic activity, from child marriage and sexual violence to high rates of maternal mortality and discriminatory norms about the kinds of roles girls can play in society. Investing in girls' futures is not only the right thing to do, it is also a smart investment. Research suggests that investments of $1.53 per day per girl to achieve secondary school completion can help developing economies expand their GDP by an average of 10 percent by 2030. Partnering with UNICEF to invest in tacking these obstacles can create transformative change for girls, their communities and our shared planet.

Creating safe spaces for girls to strengthen communities and catalyze climate resilience

For over 50 years, UNICEF partner Zonta International has supported programming to ensure that thousands of children, particularly girls, learn in safe, inclusive environments. The latest program educates girls on climate change and empowers them to become social entrepreneurs by contributing practical solutions to help build climate-resilient communities. 

The climate crisis disproportionately affects women and girls, who have less access to resource, information and choice than men do. This stalls their ability to recover from climate disasters. Gender inequality puts them at greater risk of child marriage, death, poverty, gender violence and displacement.

Amplifying girls' voices to shape the future for everyone

UNICEF is a longstanding partner of the Girls Opportunity Alliance, a program of the Obama Foundation that serves to empower and educate adolescent girls around the world by supporting grassroots organizations and leaders. Recognizing the importance of elevating adolescent girls' voices, the Girls Opportunity Alliance amplified UNICEF's U-Report poll, which surveyed young people to develop a policy agenda to advance girls' rights.

An 18-year-old from Guatemala who participated in the survey said she would like to see programs that "teach girls independence, that they have a voice, the right to decide what to do with their lives, and to give them the tools to build their future and that of their loved ones."

Adolescent girls are experts in their own lives, and have powerful ideas, solutions and visions for the future. Girls' voices, issues and priorities must be included in national strategies and policies, with real financial commitments to translate policy into action.

UNICEF's new POWER4GIRLS initiative is implementing multi-pronged programs that have already been rolled out to millions of girls, from Indonesia and the Dominican Republic to Morocco and Tanzania. It seeks to empower girls and support their voice and agency to shape national policies and directly tackle issues like gender-based violence, access to education and shame around menstruation. Co-resourcing from governments — including investing in girl-focused policies like those that help adolescent mothers return to school — is game-changing. 

Closing the gender digital divide with skills building and training

Today, over 90 percent of jobs have a digital component, yet roughly 1 billion girls and women lack the skills to participate in the rapidly evolving job market. Indeed, globally, more than twice as many adolescent girls as boys are not in employment, education or training. 

UNICEF, through the Skills4Girls program, is working in over 20 countries to provide girls with skills they need to thrive, including STEM, digital technology and social entrepreneurship. Supported by private sector partners including Chloé, Clé de Peau Beauté, Max Factor and Pandora, Skills4Girls aims to reach over 10 million adolescent girls by 2025 with gender-transformative vocational and life skills like problem-solving, self-esteem, negotiation and teamwork.

The challenges adolescent girls around the world face are huge, yet the vision they have for a brighter future is realizable. It takes a coalition to rally together to help advance girls' rights and build a better world with and for adolescent girls. Join us — together, we can make that future a reality.

Learn more about how you can partner with UNICEF to help shape the future.

UNICEF does not endorse any company, brand, organization, product or service.