July 18, 2016
11th July marks World Population Day, and this is a day dedicated to focusing on the importance of world population issues.
As of yesterday morning, there were 7.3 billion people living on Earth, and this is rapidly increasing every second. This ongoing exponential growth of the world’s population obviously brings with it many issues relating to housing, reproduction and global warming to name but a few.
In 1989, the Governing Council of the United Nations Development Programme therefore decided that we needed a day to focus on population as a matter of urgency and importance.
This year’s focus is on ‘Investing in teenage girls’, and here at One Day as always, young people and education are at the forefront of our attention.
In many cultures around the world, once girls hit puberty they are considered ready for marriage and motherhood. This very often consequently deprives them of education as they are forced out of school, which thus limits their future prospects.
A study by The World Health Organisation this year showed that approximately 20% of the world’s population of women experienced some sort of sexual violence as a child or teenager, and sadly, much of this stems from sexist attitudes and practices like child marriage. This often means that these crimes go unpunished.
In many places, basic information relating to health, reproductive and human rights is difficult for young girls to access, particularly for those of ethnic minorities or those living in poverty. This makes it extremely difficult for these more marginalised girls to fight for their rights and stand up against violence.
UNFPA want to make sure young girls have access to the correct information regarding their human rights and want to grant them the same rights to education as any young boy.
By empowering girls with education and access to information regarding their human rights, we can fight this inequality and grant girls the opportunity to achieve anything they want to do!
“A teenage girl whose rights are respected and who is able to realize her full potential is a girl who is more likely to contribute to the economic and social progress of her community and nation.” – Dr. Osotimehin, UNFPA Executive Director.
We LOVE this video about #GirlPower and empowering a new generation…
Love Aimee & the One Day Team x