Each year, the UN proclaimed International Day of the Girl Child is observed on 11th October. This year, the UN Secretary General, in his message stated, "The strength, health and empowerment of the world’s girls is a matter for every single day of the year."
UN deems that the International Day of the Girl is an opportunity to recommit to this global imperative. "Today’s girls are part of a digital generation. It is our responsibility to join with them in all their diversity, amplify their power and solutions as digital change-makers, and address the obstacles they face in the digital space. The path to girls’ digital equality is steep. A massive gap in internet use spanning geographies and generations has grown from 11 per cent in 2013 to 17 per cent six years later. In more than two thirds of all countries, girls make up only 15 percent of graduates in STEM subjects – science, technology, engineering and math,' he added while stressing the need for closing digital gender divide by mobilizing investments to support girls’ digital access, skills and creativity.
According to UNWomen, the world community mus ensure that girls play their full part in the digital generation to design and secure our common future. It has been called upon to provide equal access to the internet and digital devices for girls.
"Digital inclusion and literacy open new avenues to learning, earning and leading for girls, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the pandemic has also deepened the gender divide around connectivity and online safety, with girls facing economic and social barriers to internet and device access," it stated.
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