Statement of the UN Resident Coordinator at the International Day of the Girl Child Celebration

Your Excellency, the Hon. Deputy Prime Minister,

Principal Secretary,

Government officials,

Guests of honour,

Girl representatives,

Civil society,

UN colleagues,

Media houses,

Ladies and gentlemen,

A very good afternoon to you all, and happy (belated) International Day of the Girl Child! What a wonderful day it is to celebrate the immense strength, courage, resilience and potential of our beautiful girls, daughters and sisters. Once a girl child myself, and in many ways – I still am; I am truly delighted to be with you today.

Might I begin by congratulating all the incredible girls and women who participated in today’s documentary. I am deeply moved and proud of the magnificent women of all ages before me.

The International Day of the Girl Child is an occasion that we all hold dear, for what are we without our girls? With 1.1 billion girls worldwide; they are a precious gift for whom we must do all that we can to protect and empower. In the words of the UN Secretary-General, Mr António Guterres, “the strength, health and empowerment of the world’s girls is a matter for every single day of the year”.  Today is an opportunity to recommit to the girls of our world, promising to bring them to the forefront of the world’s progress.

This year’s theme; “Digital Generation. Our generation” speaks to the fact that our girls are being left behind in the world’s digital progress. Girls are less likely than boys to own and use digital technologies, or to gain access to tech-related skills and jobs. As our young generations continue to rely on digital technologies, we cannot afford to leave behind our young women. It is our responsibility to ensure that the obstacles that girls face in the digital space are addressed, as are their solutions as digital change-makers amplified.

Girls have so much to offer the world through their creativity, diversity and strength, for they continue to break barriers every day, tackle injustice and inequalities, fight for climate action and gender equality: it is now time to hear their voices and recommit to our promises.

However, our journey to digital equality for girls is long. Globally, the gap in Internet usage amongst new generations has grown from 11 percent in 2013 to 17 percent in 2019. During the COVID-19 pandemic, this gap was wider than ever before. Our girls, in over two thirds of countries worldwide, continue to make up only 15 percent of graduates in STEM subjects – science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

To all my girls and women present today, please raise your hand if you would like to or did want to follow a career path in science, technology, engineering and/or mathematics? The hands speak for themselves.

Girls hold incredible ability and potential in these fields, and it is our responsibility to ensure that they are given every opportunity to follow their dreams and change the world for us all. Immediate investment is therefore required to close the digital divide between boys and girls.

The United Nations is deeply committed to empowering our girls to reach their full potential. Thus, through the new platform; Generation Equality Action Coalition on Technology and Innovation, governments, civil society, the private sector and young leaders are able to come together across the world, to share their initiatives and indeed, invest in efforts to support girls in the digital technology space.

Through the collective vision represented by Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development, and in the Kingdom of Eswatini - the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) 2021-2025, the United Nations, Government and partners are committing to ensuring a “just, prosperous and resilient Eswatini where nobody is left behind,” including our strong girls.

Through a sustained focus on SDG 5; “Gender Equality” and SDG 8; “Decent Work and Economic Growth for All”, we can give our girls the opportunities that they so deserve. According to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), women tend to achieve more in the workplace than men, when granted the same access to opportunities. In the Kingdom of Eswatini, unemployment amongst women above the age of 15 remains at 24.4 percent as opposed to 21 percent amongst men.

However, it was our women and girls who felt the brunt of the COVID-19 pandemic: in developing countries, women account for a staggering 92 percent of the informal sector - all of whom were deeply impacted by lockdown measures and the resultant economic downturns.

Beyond the economic devastations experienced by women during the COVID-19 pandemic, gender-based violence rose dramatically whilst today, one (1) in three (3) Swazi girls experiences sexual violence before age 18. We continue to lose girls to early childhood marriage, whilst 87 of every 1,000 girls in Eswatini is falling pregnant, losing her right to education, and at times, her life to pregnancy and birth complications. We cannot afford to be reckless with the lives of our precious girls.

It is therefore imperative that we make every effort to protect, empower and ensure that our girls and young women have access to all social and economic opportunities to enable their prosperity, and indeed, our collective prosperity.

In the great words of the late Kofi Annan; “When women thrive, all of society benefits.”

I am therefore delighted to witness today’s celebration, in partnership with the Deputy Prime Minister’s Office, UNFPA and the UNRCO. I would like to commend you all for your significant efforts through the “Take a Girl Child to Work” initiative, for this is how we break glass ceilings in the empowerment of girls and women in the workplace. It should no longer be surprising to see young women in positions of leadership, but normal.

I encourage all girls and women to be leaders in your own right, no matter your age or experience, for we teach one another what it means to be an empowered woman.

It is only in solidarity that we will ensure that our girls reach their full potential and play an equal part in our digital revolution. L’est not we leave a single girl behind.

I thank you.