International Day of the Girl Child 2021, Gender discrimination keeping girls behind

International Day of the Girl Child 2021 with the theme "Digital generation. Our generation." this year is observed on October 11 every year since 2012.

How did it all start?

Talking about its origin, for the first time, it was identified and talked about at the Beijing Declaration which took place in 1995. At the World Conference on Women in Beijing, many countries came forward and adopted the Platform for Action.

Later in December 2011, the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution declaring October 11 as the International Day of the Girl Child. It was a day primarily dedicated to focusing on the challenges that girls face on regular basis around the globe and empowering their young minds.

From being about the rights of girl children and their importance in society, it has now focused on the access of technology to girls in the digital world.

United Nations said in a statement, “Girls know their digital realities and the solutions they need to excel on their diverse pathways as technologists for freedom of expression, joy, and boundless potential. Let’s amplify the diversity of these tech trailblazers while simultaneously widening the pathways so that every girl, this generation of girls – regardless of race, gender, language, ability, economic status, and geographic origin – lives their full potential.”

How is India celebrating the day?

On this occasion, a number of seminars and events are scheduled internationally,  including an art exhibition on female foeticide.

To observe the occasion, Delhi-based legal advocacy organization ADF India has hosted a multi-artist exhibition today, on the theme of #SHEImagine, as part of its Vanishing Girls Campaign. The exhibition showcased the works of 11 artists from all over the nation at the India International Centre, New Delhi.

“Keeping with the theme of this year’s campaign, #SHEmagine, their art aims to help the society imagine a world where SHE – each and every Girl Child – enjoys the sanctity and right to LIFE (Love, Inheritance, Freedom, and Equality), rather than “vanishing” for being a girl,” read the press note.

Advocate Tehmina Arora, the director, ADF India, mentioned in a statement, “Every day in India, 7000 girls are being aborted just because they are girls. They need each of us to advocate that their life, rights, and freedom are protected. The artists and their artworks are a powerful voice for these unborn baby girls.”

The present scenario in the country

Although Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao campaign in January 2015 to promote the well-being and education of girls, girls are lagging behind in education because of the gendered digital divide.

India accounts for half of the world’s gendered digital divide, with just one-third of its internet users being women. Moreover, the pandemic has proved to be devastating for vulnerable and underprivileged girls, especially in rural areas. Among adolescents, the divide has come out to be starker with the adverse impacts of COVID-19 experienced by adolescent girls disproportionately.

Going by the survey ‘Bridging the Digital Divide for Girls in India’ conducted between August – October 2020, 97 percent of the surveyed adolescent girls stressed the importance of owning a mobile phone to access information. However, 71 percent of these girls could not afford a phone. The pandemic has worsened the situation and has affected the education of over 158 million girls across the country. A 2020 report on Key Indicators of Household Consumption on Education in India (2017-18) suggests that Rajasthan (especially rural areas) has the lowest literacy rates for females at 57.6 percent. A third of girls drop out of school by the age of 16 and a third are married by the age of 18.

High time deliberate efforts are made in the direction of gender equality

Ensuring affordable access to devices and internet connectivity, consistent grassroots campaigns, and ease of transportation throughout the country is critical to empower families to educate their daughters digitally and when schools open fully. It is also extremely important to address the existing gender disparities that deny girls the right to education, agency, and social parity. Having said that, it goes without saying that we have a long path to cover not only in terms of bridging the gendered digital divide but gender equality as well

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