Ahead of the International Day of the Girl Child this year, Jane Muya, a 20-year-old young mother from Northern Uganda, took over the role of British High Commissioner to Uganda for a day.
The symbolic event was part of Plan International’s Girls’ Takeover initiative, highlighting this year’s theme: “Skilling and Expanding Economic Opportunities for Girls.”
At 15, Muya became a mother after dropping out of school, a situation many girls in Uganda face largely due to early marriage and lack of access to education. Muya did not let her circumstances dampen her spirit.
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Today, as a peer educator, she mentors 35 young mothers in her community “through safe spaces that offer psychosocial support, parenting guidance, and life skills training,” Nile Post reported.
Muya said during her official address as High Commissioner on October 8, “Today I take on this role not just for myself, but for all the girls whose dreams have been interrupted by child marriage. My story shows that girls can become leaders of the future. Young women can have high aspirations and drive Uganda’s economic growth.”
Her Excellency Lisa Chesney MBE, the current British High Commissioner to Uganda, who organized the event, commended Muya for her hard work and dedication.
“This takeover is a powerful reminder of the need to amplify girls’ voices. Empowered girls can become changemakers, leading in business and all walks of life. I want to see a future where all girls can aspire to reach the top of their chosen professions,” said Chesney.
Every year on International Day of the Girl Child, October 11, Plan International UK celebrates the power of girls with its Girls Takeover program.
Under the initiative, girls and young women take over leadership positions – whether in business, politics or media – to champion gender equality, better representation and the potential of girls, Plan International UK says on its website.
“It’s time that girls are front and centre at the decision-making table to help build a more equal and just world,” it adds.
Phoebe Kasoga, Country Director of Plan International Uganda, said the takeover is not only symbolic, but it is also “a rallying cry to accelerate efforts to end child marriage and create an environment where girls can thrive as equal partners in shaping Uganda’s future.”
Girls Not Brides, a global organization committed to ending child marriage, has warned that each year, 15 million girls are married before the age of 18, and if the current trends continue, the number of girls who marry as children will reach 1.2 billion by 2050.
Girls who marry as children are often not able to achieve their full potential, as they leave school early, suffer domestic violence and do not get access to proper healthcare. Some even die during pregnancy and childbirth as a result of complications because their bodies are not ready. Child marriages affect the economies of several countries and it is worrying that some countries, particularly in West and Central Africa, still allow the practice to continue.
In Uganda, 34% of girls marry or enter a union before the age of 18, and 7% marry before the age of 15. A World Bank/ICRW study estimated that ending child marriage in Uganda would generate $14.48 million in earnings for Ugandan women who married early.
“Jane Muya’s story reflects both the challenges many girls face and the possibilities that emerge when they are empowered,” said Kasoga.
