Author: Vishaka Agrawal
Contributors: Faith Nwando, Genevieve (Jenny) Niwenambaza, & Claris Nadini
Around the world, having explicit documentation of major policies and laws help ensure consent and set expectations. So having the Global Girls’ Bill of Rights officially documented makes us feel more empowered than ever.
The bill, which was passed at the United Nations HQ and with UN Women in October 2019 on the International Day of the Girl, was co-organized by She’s the First, Akili Dada in Kenya, and MAIA Impact in Guatemala, and it can be used as a reference by any girl around the world to demand their rights.
One year later, we still have a long way to go in terms of the implementations of the rights featured within smaller communities, but we feel extremely fortunate that we could take this very crucial step towards a fairer, more inclusive world. Throughout the experience, we met really inspiring girl advocates and had the opportunity to represent the voice of girls from more than 30 countries. Helping draft the bill and sharing ideas with panelists from 15 different communities (and across timezones) was a proud experience.
“The bill reaching governments of all countries will mean impact across more local communities where the majority of discrimination happens.”
The Global Girls’ Bill of Rights is the first step to ensure that girls are not denied their basic rights, and it is also a step towards achieving the potentially less obvious rights like the right to pursue STEM and representation in leadership roles. The bill reaching governments of all countries will mean impact across more local communities where the majority of discrimination happens.
We also request social media followers and influencers, global leaders, and students to help us widen our reach and amplify the impact of the bill, because it is easy to take for granted these rights when we are privileged and do not see the social problems that exist even in our own institutions.
Vishakha (left) and Faith (right) at the UN
Alongside myself, fellow girl activists Faith, Claris and Jenny were also part of the panel that worked on the wording of the bill and finalized the final ten rights. Faith and I were two of six girls to present the bill to the Deputy Secretary General of the United Nations. Later that day, we had an interview with NPR. The two of us also spoke at the annual She’s the First Summit, where I talked about inclusion in STEM (being a girl in computer science myself) and Faith introduced one of our guest speakers Isha Sesay who reported about the missing girls in Nigeria (especially with the issue being very close to Faith’s heart).
Since launching the bill, it has impacted our own engagement across our campuses. I came back to India after the event and started the first Women in Computing chapter of my college which now has more than 300 active members. This paper in Nature, a top-tier science journal shows that women are only rarely featured as the first or last author in leading journals, so now I organize research-themed events to facilitate discussions between faculty researchers and female students to expose them to the research community.
The right to education was the most important part of the bill for Faith. Where she lives in Maine, there is a large population of immigrants from Salmi and most kids are non-English speakers. Today, she regularly takes part in touring local high school students around, since the teachers face difficulties supporting the needs of all the students.
Moving forward, we want to make sure that every girl is aware that the Girls’ Bill of Rights was passed at a global level, in a way that supports their rights, so that they can demand it without any hesitation. No one should be denied these basic rights. Striving tirelessly towards a better, more inclusive world is a responsibility of every citizen.
About the author: Vishakha Agrawal is a Computer Science undergrad from India. She is passionate about empowering girls pursuing STEM, especially research in Computer Science. You can hear more from Vishakha on Twitter (vishakha__a) and on her LinkedIn (vishakha-a).
About the contributors:
Faith Nwando, originally from Nigeria, is a high school senior in NYC. She is an active member of her college communities and a fierce advocate of girls’ rights.
Genevieve (Jenny) Niwenambaza lives in Kigali, Rwanda. She is in her last year of university at Davis college, Akilah campus. She is 21 years old and a proud feminist. You can find her on Twitter (nizagenevieve) and on Instagram (jennygeniale).
Claris Nadini is a Mechanical Engineering student at Ashesi University. She is the Chair of Badili Zone Organization that upholds education in Mukuru Community in Kenya. Claris is passionate about extending educational opportunities and bringing positive change to political leadership in Kenya. Find her on Twitter (ClarisNadini) and on Instagram (clarisnadini).