Umma-Aiman Bala Dan, a nine-year-old girl, has made an appeal to the Bauchi State Government to help the female child by providing free, high-quality education for girls and incorporating reproductive health education into the state’s school curricula.
Umma-Aiman made the appeal on Wednesday in Bauchi, Nigeria, at the one-day “Dialogue Season with Young Women and Adolescents to Commemorate 2022 International Day of the Girl” with the theme: “Equal Power in Leadership Decision Making and Political Participation for Girls.”
“The challenges girls face in our communities; first and foremost, we are challenged by gender inequality, this is a major problem, where the boy child is given preference in terms of education and other opportunities for self-development, especially in digital skills, more than the girl child,” said Umma-Aiman, a Primary 5 student at Bluebird Elementary and High School, Bauchi.
According to recent figures, there are over a million children who are not in school in Bauchi State, with 60% of them being girls who work as street vendors. We are honoring girls worldwide because, as you are all aware, they are an important component of society.
“As girls, we face the challenge of menstrual hygiene and the sometimes disregarded need for reproductive healthcare. Due to financial restrictions, most girls do not have access to sanitary pads.
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“More importantly, because it is rarely covered in schools and some parents are unaware of it, the majority of girls lack information of how to take care of themselves during their periods and regarding reproductive health. These are just a few of the girl child’s basic needs. Other issues include early and forced marriage, abuse against women and girls, and a failing healthcare system.
“On behalf of the girl child in Bauchi State, I hereby appeal to the state government, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), our panelists, the media, the audience, and good citizens of Nigeria to come to our aid by providing free and quality education for us, adopting reproductive health education into the school curriculum, and providing free sanitary pads,” she continued.
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