Background of Topic:

Today is Giving Tuesday, a global day dedicated to donating to charities. (http://www.givingtuesday.org/). This Giving Tuesday, support projects like Respecting the Rights and Responding to the Needs of Adolescent Girls in Niger Project (Delaying Early Marriage in Niger) and join Zonta in saying NO to violence against women.

What is the Respecting the Rights and Responding to the Needs of Adolescent Girls in Niger Project?
Child marriage is a gross human rights violation that keeps girls out of school, endangers their health and sentences them to a lifetime of poverty. According to UNICEF, more than 64 million girls worldwide are child brides. Early marriage results in early and unwanted pregnancies poses life-threatening risks for adolescent girls; worldwide, pregnancy-related complications are the leading cause of death for 15-to-19-year-old girls. If the trend continues, 142 million children will be married by 2020.

During the 2014-2016 Biennium, Zonta International is supporting “Respecting the Rights and Responding to the Needs of Adolescent Girls in Niger” in partnership with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). The goal of this project is to reduce early marriage and early pregnancy in a critical mass of communities and departments in four regions of Niger. Read the full project description.

Organization Tie-in:

https://www.unfpa.org/public/home/adolescents/pid/6485
See what http://www.girlsnotbrides.org/ is doing to support measures to end child marriage.

Ideas for the Day:

• Read UNFPA’s report on child marriage which offers new findings, analysis and recommendations to end child marriage.
• Follow @UNICEF on Twitter and Facebook and track their efforts to reducing early marriage around the world.
• Are you a teacher? Inform your students about child marriage, its impact and what can be done using these helpful resources provided by Girls Not Brides.
• Participate in Giving Tuesday by donating to the Zonta International Foundation to support projects that empower women and girls worldwide.
• Share the below infographic and video to your social media pages to increase awareness of child marriage.

Hashtag: #ZontaSaysNO #16Days #GivingTuesday

Images to Share:

• UNFPA, Zonta’s partner in Niger, released a startling video showing the struggles of child marriage in Niger. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fb6yaY4BYgs&feature=youtu.be&list=UUUK1tpLKyul8ptY9cxcltXw
• Click images below then right click to save: