Girls are stepping into classrooms, careers and opportunities previous generations could only dream of. But blink, and those gains could be gone.
Around the world, girls’ hard-won freedoms are being questioned – even rolled back. Long before we’re anywhere near gender equality (despite what some might say).
Not on our watch. Plan International was built for this moment, standing beside girls to insist on better. Care to join us?
Together, we can help girls keep their seat in the classroom. Make choices about their own bodies. And grow up free from harm – surrounded by communities that recognise girls’ worth and aren’t afraid to defend it.
At the current rate of progress, we won't see gender equality in our lifetime. But every step forward nudges the next generation toward a world where equality is the norm.
Whether you choose to give regularly or a single gift, your donation strengthens a global movement that refuses to turn back. Because the plan is still on, until we are all equal.
girls are forced to marry each year.
girls are out of school.
of girls in the UK have experienced public sexual harassment.
Dorcas’ story: “The club has changed my life”
"I have grown up where girls are not always encouraged to continue their education. I saw my older sisters leave school early, sometimes to be married to older men. I didn't know this was called gender-based violence. I thought it was our destiny.
Everything changed the day my school's youth club organised an awareness-raising session. They talked about girls' rights and the dangers of early marriage. For the first time, I heard someone say that I had the right to go to school and choose my future. It moved me deeply.
A few weeks later, my parents received a visit from a man who wanted to marry me. I was terrified. I found the courage to see the teacher who ran the club. He listened to me and offered to organise a meeting with my parents. The mediation was not easy. But they agreed to cancel the marriage.
I joined my school's youth club. We now raise awareness in other villages. I tell my story, not to complain, but to show that things can change. The club has changed my life. It has given me the strength to say no to violence and choose my own path."
Break the cycle taught to Dorcas as ‘destiny’
Help girls learn about their rights – and be ready to resist attempts to take them away.
Your support in action
‘We can access the services we need’
A space for confidential advice – from periods to contraception – helps girls at 15-year-old Sopheak’s school in Cambodia to keep learning. And she leads it. Your donations help give girls’ control of their bodies.
‘If I can change, so can you’
An after-school club in Tanzania helped Traifon, 19, address harmful beliefs about masculinity. Now he helps other boys do the same. Your donations help sow equality in communities.
‘If I can change, so can you’
An after-school club in Tanzania helped Traifon, 19, address harmful beliefs about masculinity. Now he helps other boys do the same. Your donations help sow equality in communities.
‘I miss going to school regularly, but I learn new things’
A mobile child protection unit in Chad gives displaced girls like Mehad, 16, a few hours to learn each week. It’s not school, but it’s crucial respite. Your donations provide lifelines where crisis has eroded girls’ rights.
The world is failing girls. We won’t.
Plan International is a global charity advancing equality for girls and a just world for all.
Because here’s the truth: across the world girls still face more risks and fewer choices because of poverty, violence and discrimination. Even hard-won freedoms are increasingly under threat as girls’ worth is debated on a global stage.
It’s exhausting, isn’t it? But girls aren’t backing down. They’re organising, leading and demanding the futures they deserve. And Plan International stands fiercely beside them – even when disaster strikes. Because when we make the world a better place to be a girl, we make it better for everyone.
From pop-up spaces that keep young people in conflict learning, to after-school clubs that help to end child marriage, we’re creating lasting change for girls together. Our deep community roots, strong partnerships and more than 85 years of trust from people like you make this possible.
And we won’t stop now. The plan is still on until every girl is safe, in school, and can choose her own future. Until we are all equal.
