Today’s girls are tomorrow’s women; the differential treatment of girls and boys can hardly be separated from the preferential treatment of men to women in our society.
Being born and growing up as a girl in a developing society like Nigeria is almost like a curse due to contempt and ill treatment received from the family, the school, the community, even the church in some cases and the society at large.
The girl-child is a biological female offspring from birth to eighteen (18) years of age. This is the age before one becomes a young adult. This period covers the crèche, nursery or early childhood (0-5 years), primary (6-12 years) and secondary school (12-18 years).
During this period, the young child is totally under the care of the adult who may be her parents or guardians and older siblings. It is made up of infancy, childhood, early and late adolescence stages of development. During this period, the child is malleable, builds and develops her personality and character.
She is very dependent on the significant others, those on whom she models her behaviour, through observation, repetition and imitation. Her physical, mental, social, spiritual and emotional developments start and progresses to get to the peak at the young adult stage.
The girl child is confronted with many issues. These issues affecting girls includes but not limited to; early marriage, early childbirth, teenage pregnancy, various forms of abuse, poor sanitation and shortage of female teachers.
If you do not have female teachers in schools, it might affect the girl child’s zeal to attend a school. It is just like not having a female doctor; girls might not want to open up completely to a male doctor.
Most malignant among these issues affecting the girl child is violence. This may involve the issue of safety and security in schools; girls tend to suffer violence. From ages 15 and 24, about one out of every three girls have suffered violence one way or the other, either through s*xual harassment, rape or incest. This violence meted against the girl-child is usually at adolescent stage.
Approximately 1 in 10 people (11%) in Nigeria are adolescent girls from ages 10-19. Over a third of all adolescent Girls are age 10-12(39%), 30% are age 13-15 and 31% are age 16-19. Over half (59%) of all adolescent girls are living in rural areas.
Based on national birth registration figures, about 70% (or 80% in rural areas) of these girls will not have had their birth registered and in legal terms they do not exist, threatening their access to basic services. 1in 5 girls (22%) do not live with parents and 18% are either living with their mother or father.
Approximately 16% of adolescent girls are orphans and vulnerable. However, there are regional differences with the highest number of vulnerable girls in middle and South of the country. 1 out of 5 girls in South South region in Nigeria are more vulnerable with Bayelsa state topping the chart.
These issues confronting the girl child is not without a remedy. The challenges revolve around us as individuals, community and as a group. The government however has greater role to play in providing solutions to the problems affecting the girl child.
It becomes imperative for the government at all levels to address the issue of s*xual education; provide incentives for girls to complete primary and secondary schools. Among populations living in poverty, including Nigeria, girls face a range of additional challenges and barriers to their development, simply because they are girls.
As girls enter adolescents, they encounter more pronounced gender roles and gender discrimination, which can severely limit their access to assets (even in none poor household with adequate assets). On the part of the community, there is need for a change in orientation, from patriarchy to empowerment of women. The girl child is not a curse but a blessing to her society. Save a girl child today for a better tomorrow!
CHINWE OKOLIE
PROGRAMME CORDINATOR
GOLDCOAST DEVELOPMENTAL FOUNDATION
