Even before COVID-19 hit, many schoolgirls in Ghana faced obstacles in pursuing coursework, and later employment, in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields. From 2017-2021, UNICEF, together with Korea International Cooperation Agency, supported to the ‘Better Life for Girls’ project in Ghana. This initiative enabled over 4,…

Even before COVID-19, 2.2 million children, most of whom are girls, were out of school in South Sudan. Protracted conflict has devastated the country’s education system, and the recent pandemic left an additional 2.1 million children out of school. UNICEF is working closely with the Government and other partners to advocate for a complete, safe…

Reimagining Girls’ Education: Solutions to Keep Girls Learning in Emergencies presents an empirical overview of what works to support learning outcomes for girls in emergencies. Research shows that girls in emergencies are disadvantaged at all stages of education and are more likely to be out-of-school than in non-emergency settings. Girls are…

NEW YORK/GENEVA, 1 December 2020 , – Two thirds of the world’s school-age children – or 1.3 billion children aged 3 to 17 years old – do not have internet connection in their homes, according to a new joint report from UNICEF and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). The report How Many Children and Youth Have Internet Access at Home? notes a similar lack of access among…, Region,  , School-age children 3-17 years old unconnected at home, West and Central Africa  95% - 194 million  East and Southern Africa  88%    - 191 million South Asia  88% - 449 million Middle East and North Africa  75% - 89 million Latin America and the Caribbean  49% - 74 million Eastern Europe and Central Asia  42% - 36 million East Asia and the Pacific  32% - 183 million, Global,  , 67% - 1.3 billion, Last year, UNICEF and ITU launched Giga, a global initiative to connect every school and its surrounding community to the Internet. Working with governments, Giga has now mapped over 800,000 schools in 30 countries. With this data, Giga works with governments, industry, civil sector, and private sector partners to craft compelling investment cases…, Notes to editors:,   The report uses a globally representative analysis on the availability of internet connection in households with children and young people aged between 0-25 years old, with data from more than 85 countries.   12-year-old Elizabeth and 10-year-old Justin follow a Social Studies lesson on the EDU TV while doing their revision at home in Kibera.…

The year 2020 marks the 25th anniversary of the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the most comprehensive global agenda for girls and women to date. We see today technological advances that we could only dream about 25 years ago, especially in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) areas. Yet, despite…

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused the largest disruption to education in history. At the peak of the pandemic in April 2020, the nationwide closures impacted more than 1.5 billion students, or over 90 per cent of the world’s student population, from pre-primary to higher education in 200 countries. This unprecedented disruption to education has the…

The commitment of UNICEF to an equal future for all girls and boys recognizes that promoting gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls is central to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).  The UNICEF Gender Action Plan, 2018–2021 (GAP), both articulates and operationalizes this commitment, providing a road map for…

Child marriage – marriage before the age of 18 – is a human rights violation. Despite laws against it, the harmful practice remains widespread. Child marriage can lead to a lifetime of suffering. Girls who marry before they turn 18 are less likely to remain in school and more likely to experience domestic violence. Young teenage girls are more…

NEW YORK, 4 March 2020, –, More girls are going to school and staying in school than ever before, but remarkable gains in education have made little headway in helping shape a more equal, less violent environment for girls, UNICEF, Plan International and UN Women warned today in a new report. The report, released ahead of the 64 th session of the Commission on the Status of…

Tokyo/New York, , 11 October, – Clé de Peau Beauté, the luxury skincare and makeup brand of Tokyo-based Shiseido Company Limited, has today, on International Day of the Girl, pledged the world’s largest contribution of US$8.7 million to support UNICEF’s Gender Equality Program. Worldwide, 1 in 4 adolescent girls aged 15-19 is not in employment, education or training compared…