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Because I'm a girl, a global campaign focusing on improving the lives of girls
in developing countries.
Girls who are married too young. Girls who are pulled out of school.
Girls who are used as sex slaves in wars.
Girls who are teenage mothers. Girls. But what about boys?
What? Boys in a girls campaign?
A new report by Children's Charity Plan International says fathers,
husbands, brothers and boyfriends
all have a part to play in creating a more equal society.
Boys face pressure to conform to certain stereotypes
Traditional ideas of real men being tough and hard, not showing emotions can
be damaging for both girls and boys.
A father has a vital role to play in a girl's life.
Decisions he takes can affect her future like whether she says in school or has a
good relationship with her husband.
65-year-old Sekou Soya,
a farmer from Guinea was appalled when he learned about the dangers of female
genital cutting.
He refused to let his nine daughters go through the local initiation ceremony
involving cutting.
Ostracized for several years by his community
Sekou was forced to dig a well for his family. Sekou's brave stance was
eventually vindicated when the rest of the village rejected cutting
after a local health campaign.
Research shows that preschool can help promote gender equality
at an early age. Going to preschool also makes it more likely that a child will attend
and do well in primary school.
The benefits of educating girls
are unambiguous, yet attitudes continue to prioritize boys education.
Ignoring girls is not only unjust, it is shortsighted.
The 500 million adolescent girls and young women in developing countries
are potentially a major force in driving economic progress.
Attitudes are hard to change but at Plan we believe gender equality is good for boys too
and we want everyone, boys and girls, men and women to
join our campaign. To bring about change we all need to become campaigners
in both our private and our public lives so that people of power
when that's at home, at school, in the workplace or in government [unclear]
equal rights
and help us to create equal opportunities for everyone.