“Our parents need to und Girls for change

Friends Aïcha, Antoinette, Rachel and Blandine are Child Rights Ambassadors. All of them are also members of a group that the village children can go to if they feel their rights have been violated. Once the friends have listened to children who have been ill-treated, they meet with village or school leaders to work together to try and find a solution that is good for the child.

“In my village, the destiny of girls of my age is determined by traditions. You have to marry young if you don’t go to school. School isn’t the most important thing for our parents. It’s all about finding a husband for your daughter as soon as possible. I have no right to speak; they decide what I do otherwise I’ll be beaten.

“I’d like to be a doctor so I can help children, but I also want to be a lawyer and defend the rights of girls, boys and women, because they are rarely listened to and everyone has to do what men say.”

Aïcha, 16, Child Rights Ambassador, Senegal