The New York based Working Group on Girls of the NGO Committee on UNICEF represents more than 100 organizations around the world and is committed to promoting the rights of girls in all areas and stages of their lives, advancing the rights and status of girls and assisting them to develop their full potential.
Promises Made
Promises have been made to girls that must now be kept. The Beijing Platform for Action:
- Pledges to eliminate all forms of discrimination against girls, specifically addressing violence, education, economic exploitation and harmful cultural attitudes and practices;
- Promises to strengthen families and to promote girls’ participation in their societies;
- Calls attention to the need to overcome the gender stereotypes that exist in many societies in order to allow girls to develop their full potential;
- Recognizes that the advancement of women is not sustainable without attention to the rights of girls.
The 53rd Session of the Commission on the Status of Women offers a unique opportunity for Member States to accelerate programmes designed to fulfill previous promises and to ensure the equal sharing of responsibilities between women and men—girls and boys—including caregiving in the context of HIV/AIDS.
Consequences of Gender Inequality for Girls
Cultural norms, social roles, and the gender stereotypes associated with them determine household roles and as a result, girls bear a disproportionate share responsibilities and caregiving. The consequences for girls are devastating and include:
- Denial of their right to the education necessary to prepare for the responsibilities of full participation in society and in the family;
- AIDS frequently forces girls to withdraw from school to fulfill caregiving duties and to help compensate for lost family income.
- 79 percent experience disrupted schooling when parents die of AIDS.
- Limited time for play and other creative pursuits so essential to their personal development of children;
- Girls spend more time than boys on the cleaning and upkeep of the household.
- Up to 90 percent of the care due to illness is provided in the home by women and girls. This is in addition to the many tasks they already perform, such as taking care of children, cooking, cleaning and, in subsistence areas, fetching water and fire wood.
- Limited opportunity to develop peer relationships and leadership skills;
- Girls spend twice as much time as boys on cooking-related activities.
- Girls spend 33–85 percent more time per day working at home and in unpaid market work than do boys of the same age.
- Limited time to take care of themselves.
- Almost 25 percent of girls ages 15 – 24 in some countries are HIV positive.
- Girls in families affected by AIDS overwhelmingly have lost their right to recreation.
Root Causes of Gender Inequality
Cultural norms, gender roles and gender stereotypes are at the root of gender inequality that privileges men and boys and continues to burden women and girls. We know that:
- Gender role development is socially constructed and learned from birth;
- Strict enforcement of prevailing norms forces young girls and boys into strict gender roles;
- Prevailing gender stereotypes and less valued social roles associated with the more marginalized status of women heightens the vulnerability of girls;
- Race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, rural/urban residence, migrant/refugee status, disability have profound effect on the inequalities experienced by girls.
Recommendations
- Launch a global campaign to transform attitudes, norms and gender stereotypes. A worldwide campaign to encourage positive attitudes and behavior to combat gender inequality and eliminate stereotypes that prevent full partnership in the household and in the public sphere would help to eliminate prejudices and customary practices which are based on the notion of girls’ inferiority.
- Promote the competence and resilience of girls through education and training. Effective strategies to achieve gender equality must include the social, political and economic empowerment of girls through education programmes and job training to prepare them for their critical roles in their families and communities.
- Promote the participation, visibility, and empowerment of girls. The creation of safe spaces where girls can speak, voice their concerns and obtain assistance will ensure that all girls, especially those from disadvantaged groups, can enjoy full gender equality.
- Provide resources and funding for gender equality and empowerment of girls. States must develop gender-responsive budgeting that explicitly allocates monies for: girls’ health programs, including adolescent and HIV/AIDS issues; programs that offer opportunities to girls and end human trafficking; programs to end all forms of violence against the girl child, including genital cutting, incest, prenatal sex selection and infanticide; and education at all levels.
- Partner with families and communities to address the needs of girls heading households and children without parental care, including in the context of the HIV/AIDS. Programmes which address the needs of girls heading households and children orphaned by AIDS must be holistic and include measures to increase men and boys’ responsibility for home-based care in order to address the disproportionate burden borne by girls.
- Collect, analyze and disseminate data on girls, disaggregated by sex, age, socioeconomic status, race and ethnicity. Institutionalizing the collection of disaggregated data in critical sectors inter alia health, education, labor and protection will help to create an inclusive gender perspective for the planning, implementation and monitoring of government programs and for benchmarking across nations and communities.
- Strengthen the role of civil society and of organizations for girls’ participation and empowerment. Tackling gender stereotypes, empowering girls to participate more fully in their families and communities, increasing educational and training opportunities for girls, and expanding data collection and dissemination will require the active involvement of civil society groups.
