Girls take the crease: UNICEF and Barbados Royals mark International Day of the Girl
Cricket and conversation highlight the resilience and leadership of girls across the Eastern Caribbean
Bridgetown, Barbados, 11 October 2025 - From bold cover drives to brave conversations, girls across the Eastern Caribbean are proving that they are not just participating in change. They are leading it.
To commemorate International Day of the Girl 2025, UNICEF joined the Barbados Royals Girls’ Cricket Club at Friendship Playing Field for a morning of sport, solidarity, and dialogue under the theme “The Girl I Am, The Change I Lead.”
The session began with the club’s regular batting and fielding practice, involving girls as young as five up to sixteen, before moving into a friendly match featuring UNICEF staff, Royals women cricketers, and the young athletes. The energy on the field was matched by the purpose behind the day, celebrating girls’ leadership while spotlighting the barriers they continue to face.
Firhaana Bulbulia, UNICEF Youth Engagement Officer said the event was an extension of ongoing partnership between UNICEF and the Royals to ensure that the rights of children are embedded in the country's sporting culture.
"Today's activity is just a continuation of that work, ensuring that we meaningfully include girls, bring messages to them that empower them, build their capacity to lead and of course, have fun. Traditionally, we know sports is a very male dominated culture where boys are very much encouraged to take part in sports.
At UNICEF, we believe in equalizing the field, making sure there are equal opportunities for boys and girls of different backgrounds and different abilities to be able to benefit even beyond sports, to progress in all areas of their lives."
The event was about more than cricket. It was an opportunity to shine a light on the disproportionate challenges facing girls that often go unseen.
Stigma around menstruation and gender-based violence, the mental health impacts of discrimination, trauma, and the persistent undervaluing of girls were all critical to UNICEF's advocacy on the day. These were some of the issues discussed during a special team talk that followed the match.
As part of UNICEF’s global observance, this year’s theme amplifies girls’ lived experiences in humanitarian contexts, calling on decision-makers to invest in the support and services they urgently need.
Adding inspiration to the day, Barbados Royals star player Aaliyah Alleyne, fresh from her team’s Caribbean Premier League (CPL) victory, joined the session with the championship trophy — a symbol of what’s possible when girls push past social and economic barriers.
The event also featured remarks from Heather Stewart, UNICEF Child Protection Specialist, and Marsha Boyce, Chair of the Barbados Olympic Association’s Gender Equality Commission, who both encouraged the girls to see sport as a pathway to confidence, leadership, and equality.
For the girls, the morning was as much about inspiration as it was about participation — a celebration of their strength, their voices, and their dreams for the future.
