The 79th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and Summit of the Future brought together world leaders, government representatives and civil society organizations and girls’ rights activists in New York to respond to the most pressing challenges of our time, including ending child, early, and forced marriages and unions.
Our Team leader Joan Kembabazi represented Gufasha Girls Foundation with a call to World leaders, governments and international donor organizations to increase commitment to and investments in adolescent girls’ rights and leadership up to 2030 and beyond. From the 20th to the 30th, Joan attended events of the Summit of the Future and the New York Climate Week in New York. These events included events on girls and women’s rights, child marriage, SRHR, Girls’ education, Climate Change and female leadership.
During the Summit of the Future action days, Joan joined more than 50 young women from around the world including Malala Yousafzai, the youngest Nobel Prize Laureate, gathered in a demonstration that held the United Nations member states accountable for failing to prioritize girls and young women in the planning and content of the Summit of the Future. The demonstration by the girl activists delivered a strong message: world leaders aren’t the experts on what girls want and need for their futures—girls are. Here, Joan urged World leaders to let girls lead discussions on matters that directly impact their lives.
Joan was invited as a panelist by the UN Foundation on a side event “Power in Her Voice – Reimagining a Gender-Equal Future”, an intergenerational dialogue which spotlighted a unique voice and power of women and girls in reimagining a gender-equal future. Joan shared her insights on the important role that empowerment plays in building girls as strong leaders and change agents and highlighted the impact of the #ReturnMyFuture, our project campaign that empowers girls to be powerful advocates against child marriage in the communities of Uganda.
A win for the Global movement fighting child marriage.
The official outcome document, the Pact of the Future which was adopted at the Summit of the Future included language on child, early and forced marriage (CEFM) under Action 35 which is a significant win for the global movement to end child marriage, early and forced marriages and unions.
This reflects the advocacy efforts and grassroot work of national and international organizations including Gufasha Girls Foundation working tirelessly to end child marriage and empower girls. This is also a major step forward in recognizing CEFM as a violation of girls’ and young women’s human rights, reaffirming global commitments to address and this harmful practice.
Networking
Joan met Florence and Josh, a team from Population Matters, a UK Charity based organization where Joan acts as a Choice Ambassador. Population Matters awarded Joan as a Change Champion with the 2024 Women Empowerment Award. Joan also met Princess Mabel Van Oranje, a powerful voice in the global movement to end child marriage and other young feminist activists from around the World and was able to strengthen ties and relationships with existing and new partners.
Looking Forward
The UN Summit of the Future served as a reminder of our interconnectedness and the collective responsibility we share in addressing global challenges. And as we reflect on the outcomes – the Pact of the Future, it is crucial for all the commitments made by governments and member states to be followed by tangible actions at both national and local levels to pave the way for a more sustainable and equitable world.
