National Council partners with local charity She Can He Can to host event aimed at empowering young females
On Thursday, October 11th, the National Council building in Monte-Carlo was illuminated in purple to mark the International Day of the Girl. Partnering with the Monaco-based charity She Can He Can, the Council hosted 16 young female students and offered them the chance to ask questions and listen to inspirational stories from prominent female politicians. The event was part of a global initiative to empower young women and highlight the challenges and opportunities available to girls all over the world.
Started in 2012 by the United Nations, the International Day of the Girl has served as a rallying call to governments, businesses and individuals all over the world to recognise the discrimination against women in all walks of life and rectify those injustices. This year’s edition has taken the theme of “A Skilled GirlForce”, aiming to educate young females on the opportunities available to them. Of the one billion adolescents – including more than 600 million girls – who will come into the global workforce in the next 10 years, over 90% of those in the third world will be subject to low pay, abuse and exploitation.
This year’s event hopes to put a stop to those tragedies. Through #Girl2Leader campaigns held across the world, more than 1,500 girls have been welcomed at events where they can speak directly to local politicians and businesswomen who have overcome discrimination, exploitation and worse to achieve success in their relative fields. Aside from Monaco, events took place in countries as diverse as Bolivia and Guinea, Ukraine and Malaysia, Liberia and the USA. The campaign spanned five continents and included collaboration from national and international organisations such as the Albanian National Youth Network, Luton Lights and G(irls)20.
In Monaco, the event was hosted by MP Nathalie Amoratti-Blanc, who also serves as the president of the Women and Family Commission. Other notable females at the event included Vibeke Brask-Thomsen, director of She Can He Can, Isabelle Bonnal, director of the Department of Youth, Education and Sports and a number of prominent female politicians. Also in attendance were the president of the National Council Stephane Valeri and Marc Mourou, president of the Education and Youth Commission. The girls were invited to learn how the women first became involved in politics and ask questions on how they might do the same.