International Day of the Girl

On 11 October 2018, girls once again took over the roles of leaders and influencers in a global display of their power and potential. 

Across the world, girls stepped into the shoes of presidents, mayors, head teachers, business leaders and more to show that girls should be free to dream and free to lead.

 

The global action on International Day of the Girl is a call for a social and political revolution to tear down the barriers that continue to hold girls back. When girls have equal opportunities, they can transform their lives and communities.
Without this, gender equality is impossible. Current efforts are too small and disjointed to achieve lasting impact. In addition, our research reveals that girls still face discrimination and violence despite laws, policies and global targets put into place to advance change.
#GirlsTakeover is an initial step on a long road to change but it also shows that the girls’ rights movement is gaining momentum.

What happened this year?

• 1000 takeovers organised and run directly by Plan International offices
• 60 countries taking part in Plan International's #GirlsTakeover action
• #GirlsTakeover CEO of Ethiopian Airlines, Prime Minister of Timor-Leste, Vice President of Uganda, National Assembly of Ecuador, Parliament of Senegal and many more! Take a look at some of the highlights:

Global Girls' Summit 2018

This year, the Global Girls’ Summit was held on 10 October in Brussels, the global hub for 2018's #GirlsTakeover action. It was the second in a series of annual summits supporting girls’ leadership after last year’s event in Paris.

The event brought together the world’s leading minds in business, government, entrepreneurship, science, sport, arts and media to celebrate the power of girls and call for increased action to support girls’ activism and leadership. 

It also saw the launch of the brand new, girl-led, global campaign for gender equality:
Girls Get Equal

Get involved

You can find a wealth of videos, pictures and graphics in our social media toolkit to share with family and friends on your social media channels far beyond day of the girl!  

You could also visit the Girls Get Equal site to found out how to be an everyday ally to girls and young women.

History of the Day of the Girl

Girls march through Uganda to mark the International Day of the Girl

11 October has been a key global moment to celebrate the power of girls and highlight the barriers they face since the United Nations adopted it as International Day of the Girl in December 2011.  

While there has long been an International Women's Day and an International Day of the Child, neither of these days recognise the unique position of girls who are discriminated against simply for being young and female.

We led the global effort to build a coalition of support behind the Day of the Girl, securing support from the Canadian government which took our call all the way to the United Nations.

We worked with girls who believed that an international day could be a launch pad for global action on girls’ rights. Through their stories, ideas and views it was clear that an international day for girls would bring global focus to their lack of representation in the global development agenda.