Today on the 11th of October, we mark International Day of the Girl—a day to champion the rights of girls around the world and recognise the multilayered inequities that restrict their choices and limit their futures. 

According to the United Nations, global crises of climate, conflict, and poverty all disproportionately affect girls, and too many are still denied their basic rights. In sub-Saharan Africa these challenges remain particularly steep, with girls facing systemic barriers that threaten to prevent them from reaching their full potential. Across the region: 

• Four million girls will never attend school [UNESCO]. 

• Up to four million girls drop out of school each year due to teenage pregnancy [MSI Reproductive Choices].  

• Adolescent girls are three times more likely to acquire HIV compared to their male peers [UNAIDS]. 

• Only 37% of married women, ages 15-49, are able make decisions about their sexual and reproductive health and rights [United Nations]. 

Every girl has the right to determine her own future. Each day, girls are taking action to build a world in which all girls are protected, respected, and empowered, but they need allies who listen to and respond to their needs. 

Ensuring girls have the tools to thrive.

mothers2mothers (m2m) is investing in a world in which every girl can fulfil her potential by ensuring young people have the information and support they need to make informed decisions about their health and future. m2m trains and employs young people, ages 19-24, as community health workers known as Peer Mentors. They provide age-appropriate, youth-friendly health services to other adolescents and young people in their community, challenging misinformation and stigma around topics like sexual and reproductive health and HIV/AIDS, and supporting their clients to access care. 

Because m2m Peer Mentors come from the same communities and are close in age to their clients, service delivery is rooted in shared understanding. Peer Mentors leverage their lived experience to connect with clients, becoming trusted role models and educators. 

Meet Christabel…

Christabel, an m2m Peer Mentor in Zambia, knows firsthand the importance of shared understanding when it comes to fostering healthy behaviours among adolescent girls in her community. 

“Girls can be scared to come to the health facility and find someone that is older than them, who might judge them. But when they see my face, that I am young like them, the rapport is easy to build. We have support groups where we discuss everything to do with girls’ health. We discuss the correct use of condoms, that they not only prevent pregnancies, but also the spread of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and HIV.” 

Critically, m2m Peer Mentors’ work with adolescents begins with parental consent. This not only makes service delivery for adolescents possible, but by getting parents on board, it also helps to break the cycle of stigma surrounding health care, creating lasting change. 

“Most parents are not educated about sexual health and HIV, so they can feel uncomfortable when we want to teach their children about these things. The best way to approach this is to give parents the full packet of information and explain to them what we will be teaching their children. Their involvement makes the whole process easier.” 

When we invest in girls, we invest in a brighter future for all. 

m2m’s 2023 impact data demonstrates the tangible ways that Peer Mentors like Christabel are bringing health and hope to adolescent girls in their communities. 

• Condom distribution among m2m’s adolescent clients increased to 86% in 2023, well above the 31% benchmark for sub-Saharan Africa (UNICEF). This is crucial for preventing STIs and unintended pregnancies. 

• The use of family planning among m2m’s adolescent clients increased to 59% in 2023, surpassing the regional benchmark of 34.8% (UNICEF). 

• The number of adolescent clients who screened for STIs increased to 59% in 2023, well above the 20% regional benchmark (UNICEF). Early screening and treatment of STIs is critical in preventing long-term health complications and the spread of HIV.

This International Day of the Girl, you can help us continue this life-changing work. By making a donation to m2m, you’re helping to equip a generation of girls with the knowledge, confidence, and support they need to thrive.