The Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection (MoGCSP) in collaboration with UNICEF Ghana, UNHCR Ghana, Compassion International, Plan International Ghana and World Vision Ghana commemorated the 2021 International Day of the Girl Child (IDGC) on Monday 11th October, 2021.
The United Nations General Assembly on December 19, 2011 declared October 11 as International Day of the Girl Child. A declaration built on the outcomes of the 1995 World Conference on Women in Beijing which advanced the rights of not only women but girls (Beijing Declaration).
The International Day of the Girl Child is celebrated each year to direct people’s attention to the need to address the challenges facing girls and to promote girls’ empowerment towards the fulfilment of their human rights.
This year’s celebration was under the theme “The Digital Generation: Promoting Citizenship for Girls without Discrimination”
The essence of the celebration was to provide young girls with exposure and the requisite etiquette on internet use, create awareness among girls on the dangers internet can pose to their safety and also provide opportunity for girls to make a case for increased investments from stakeholders towards closing the digital divide, access to devices, connectivity, skills and safety.
Delivering the keynote address at this year’s celebration, the Caretaker Minister for the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, Hon. Cecilia Abena Dapaah, urged stakeholders to be conscious of the special needs of the girl child in the digital world and also create equal opportunities in science, technology, engineering and mathematics field to ensure that girls as citizens benefit fully from the digital revolution.
As part of the celebration, the Methodist Girls’ High School, Mamfe (MEGHIS) in the Eastern Region demonstrated some of their inventions which included a ‘Smart Bin’ equipped with a sensor that automatically detects the need to drop trash and a ‘Coding Robot’ that is operated by applying a specific code.
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