According to the American Psychological Association, young girls between the ages of 8 and 11 typically have a healthy self-identity: they view themselves as strong and confident, unafraid to share their opinions or thoughts.
However, as they enter adolescence, girls undergo physical changes and development that differentiate them from boys of the same age. Girls begin the transition to womanhood, encountering the pressures of more rigid gender roles, defined by traditional and societal values. They become more concerned with how women are ``supposed to behave'' and with their physical and sexual attractiveness.
Although research shows that self-esteem decreases for both sexes after elementary school, the drop is more dramatic for girls. Compared with boys of the same age, adolescent girls are more anxious and stressed; experience diminished academic achievement; suffer from increased depression and lower self-esteem; experience more body dissatisfaction and distress over their looks; suffer from greater numbers of eating disorders; and attempt suicide more frequently.
“We need to help Rwandan girls strengthen their self-confidence so that they can confront the challenges that exist in life,” said Rwanda’s First Lady, Jeannette Kagame. “Women can do everything that men can do; they should not be intimidated.” Rwanda has made great progress in recent years to encourage equal opportunities for women and men, and as a result many more girls are enrolling in the 2,295 primary schools throughout the country.
However, girls are far more likely than boys to drop out of school. Only about half of all girls who enroll in primary school actually complete their education. The demands of the household, gender-related violence and improper sanitation facilities at schools have all contributed to such a drop out rate.
These statistics reflect a serious concern: an entire gender continues to face striking inequities and mistreatment, brought on not only by crippling gender roles, but by the ignorance of an inconsiderate society.
Why Girls?
Girls and women have struggled throughout history in their efforts to produce positive change for themselves. There have never been campaigns for men’s suffrage or men’s rights; even in civil right movements, the female perspective was largely ignored or marginalized.
For adolescent girls in the developing world, where poverty, war, hunger, and AIDS are common aspects of life, empowerment is especially critical. 600 million adolescent girls – potentially the most powerful agents of change for themselves, their families, and their communities – remain invisible to all others, voiceless in an increasingly loud world. Their needs, their voices are our priority.
[If you’d like to help make girls visible, stand up and be counted by becoming a fan of The Girl Effect, and getting your friends to do the same. Tell the world that you think the 600 million girls in the developing world deserve better – for themselves, and for the end of poverty.]
References
Cantor, Dorothy W. Task (1996). Force on Adolescent Girls: Strengths and Stresses. American Psychological Association. Retrieved October 15, 2008 from http://www.apa.org/pi/cyf/adolesgirls.html#tas
The Girl Effect. Why we pay attention to girls? Retrieved October 15, 2008 from http://www.girleffect.org/
