The theme for this year’s Day of the Girl Child is “Girls’ Progress = Goals’ Progress: A Global Girl Data Movement.

Since 2011, this day is set apart by the international community to focus their attention on the need to address the challenges girls face and to promote girls’ empowerment and the fulfilment of their human rights.

There are 1.1 billion girls around the world today but they are often faced with discrimination, violence and are faced with a lack of access to equal opportunities. There are glaring gaps in data and knowledge about the specific needs and challenges that girls face and this year’s theme is a call for action for increased investment in collecting and analyzing girl-focused, girl-relevant data.

Sri Lanka marked #IDG2016 on the 10^th of October, at a national event with the participation of over 200 school children- both boys and girls, who discussed together, the rights and the unique challenges that girls face in Sri Lanka and around the world.

Director Public Affairs, Policy and Advocacy at FPA Sri Lanka, Ms. Madusha Dissanayake delivered the keynote address at this event. She highlighted the challenges that young girls have to face growing up and underscored the importance of ensuring equal access to opportunity for all so that aspirations of all children, girls and boys, could be materialized. ‘Dreams of all children- both girls and boys are equally important, stories of all children deserve to be heard’ she said. 

The Secretary of the Ministry of Women’s Affairs Ms. Chandrani Senaratne and the Chairperson of the National Child Protection Authority Ms. Natasha Balendra were also present at the event.

The following day, at the request of the Prime Minister, a letter signed by close to 50 UN agencies, NGOs, medical practitioners, academics and partners was handed over to the Minister of Women and Child Affairs Hon. Chandrani Bandara. The letter was presented by Dayani, a 21 year old young woman from the Monaragala District, accompanied by Paula Bulanca ( UNICEF) and Alain Sibenaler (UNFPA). It called on the government to continue its work to  end child marriage and teenage pregnancy. Read it here;

http://bit.ly/2e6DEs6