Windhoek
In commemorating the International Day of the Girl Child the National Young Women Association (NYWA) on Sunday launched a new website dedicated to raising issues of concern to young women.
The weareyoungwomen.wordpress blog site is an educational tool to encourage self-reflection and self-awareness, as well as expanding the realm of possibilities.
NYWA President, Hallo Angala, says the day commemorated around the world annually, is meant to promote girls’ human rights, highlight gender inequalities between girls and boys and address the various forms of discrimination and abuse endured worldwide by the girl child.
Themed ‘The Power of Adolescent Girl’, the International Day of the Girl Child aims to focus public awareness on the rights and needs of the girl child.
“In Africa, the girl child is still subjected to harmful attitudes and practices, such as abuse and exploitation, child marriages and other gruesome acts, for example female genital mutilation, a cultural practice exercised in countries such as Mali. Discrimination does not only violate the rights of the girl child, but also affects her ability to thrive in life,” Angala says.
She adds that according to a recent report in The Economist, 500 million people in Africa now have a mobile phone, with the majority of the youth using them to access social media.
“So we decided to use social media as an educational tool,” Angala explains. The blog will contain stories, pictures and poetry to get the young women thinking and asking questions about who they are and what they represent in today’s world.
Leader… President of the National Young Women Association Hallo Angala