Sometime this year, a 10-year-old girl in the rural areas of Afghanistan was sold to her father’s debtor as a way to cover his debt. The girl has therefore been cast into a life of perpetual torment, being the wife of a man who was many years her father’s age. She became the victim of the unending disregard for the autonomy and rights of a girl child.

This sort of disregard for the girl child remains a troubling reality in the Northern regions of Nigeria, where child marriage is still widely practised. While some would deem it a product of the region’s prominent religion of Islam, the International Islamic Fiqh Academy’s resolution requires the girl’s consent and forbids a marriage that causes her harm. Yet the practice continues, raising a much deeper issue: the protection of the rights of women and the girl child. (iifa-aifi.org, unicef.org)

At the Heart of the Movement

More than ever, the rise of the feminist movement has continued to spark outrage. For most people, the movement is replete with much hypocrisy. Some have gone further to cite it as being the breeding ground for misandrists and the new wave of “oppression against men” spearheaded by leftists.

While all of these seem important, nothing sits more vital at the heart of the feminist movement than the protection of the girl child. Every girl deserves the chance to grow into a woman who would transform the world.

It has become increasingly important to champion the rights of women, not for the mere reason that women deserve more (they do), but for the sake of the girl child. Girls like the little Afghan girl, who deserves to be in school and studying towards her dreams, and not to be a bargaining chip for her father’s debt.

Brave’s Dreams Matter

At The Special Foundation, our goal is not just to educate the future of Africa, but to ensure that girls are at the forefront of the movement.

For this reason, stories like Brave’s, from Zaria, who is set on being the next president of Nigeria, are able to spur more actionable steps to ensure that girls are encouraged to pursue their dreams instead of being background characters to the men in their lives.

This year, at the Special Summer School, we met Brave again and, according to her, “her resolve has not withered.”

Thanks to the continued support of partners, Brave was onboarded onto our Inspire Scholarship programme, starting her junior secondary school education with the self-belief that her dreams matter.

Transforming One Child’s Life at a Time

The bitter truth is that we may not be able to touch the lives of little girls like the one in Afghanistan—tragic as it is—but we are resolved to continue transforming the lives of little girls like Brave, whose dreams matter just the same regardless of their gender.

As we reflect on the just-concluded International Day of the Girl Child on October 11, we are reminded that this commitment must continue beyond the day itself. Every girl deserves the right to dream, and the opportunity to pursue those dreams.

And we call on you to be part of our mission: transforming one child’s life at a time.

| Written by Mifa Adejumo | Communications Lead, The Special Foundation