South Sudan is making preparations to join the world in the celebration of the first ever International Day of the Girl Child on Thursday.
South Sudan School Feeding Programme Officer at the UN World Food Programme Kiganzi Nyakato told CRN that the day highlights the importance of girl child education and her growth process.Ms Nyakato said in South Sudan girls face many challenges, including early marriage and heavy domestic responsibilities, which keep them out of school together with long distances and high fees.
A 2007 UNICEF survey revealed that only 42 percent of South Sudanese girls attended school, one of the lowest percentages in the world.
The national ministry of Gender, Child and Social Welfare organizes the International Day of the Girl Child in the ten states of South Sudan in collaboration with UNICEF and education actors on October 11.
The day was declared by the UN General Assembly last December to promote girls’ human rights, highlight gender inequalities between girls and boys and address the various forms of discrimination and abuse suffered by girls around the globe.