Wilmar Africa, a leading manufacturer of household consumer products in Ghana has marked this year's International Day of the Girl Child 2024 with 6,000 girls in Yilo Krobo, Somanya in the Eastern region of Ghana.

The producer of Jamaa washing Detergent and alife soap partnered with an NGO Inspire Today to reach out to girls in the Yilo Krobo Education Directorate.

The Yilo Krobo community has recorded high cases of child marriages over the past few years largely due to poverty and lack of education, rising cases of teenage pregnancies, sexual harassment, sex for sanitary pads, and not giving the girl child an equal opportunity to go to school among others.

The partnership between Inspire Today and Wilmar Africa is to ensure that the girls practice clean and hygienic menstruation so they can go to school and remain in school. Wilmar Africa gave the girls a three-month supply of bathing soap and washing powder.

Marketing Manager of Wilmar Africa Ewuraba Adusei, underscored the importance of pushing the girl child to achieve excellence.

“Girls are not only courageous in the face of challenges, but hopeful for the future. Every day, they are taking action to realise a vision of a world in which all girls are protected, respected and empowered. Evidence shows that with the right support, resources and opportunities, the potential of the worlds more than 1.1 billion girls is limitless. And when girls lead, the impact is immediate and wide-reaching. We want them to use the product we have given them, so they can be clean and ready to take on the world.”

Executive Director of Inspire Today, Etornam Sey, expressed gratitude to Wilmar Africa for their consistent support for these girls over the years.

“We have received support from Wilmar since 2020, it has been 4 years of them supplying girls across all 7 regions we have visited so far and all 49,000 plus girls we have so far helped. It has been a very rewarding partnership, and we have seen the smiles on the faces of these girls and how they have become confident over the years.

"Today, one in five young women aged between 20 and 24 years were married as children. Nearly one in four partnered/married adolescent girls have experienced sexual or physical abuse. There are proven solutions for accelerating progress towards a future in which every girl can obtain the quality health care, education and skills she needs to succeed. We are grateful to Wilmar for being part of the solution to protect these vulnerable girls.”

The 2024 International Day of the Girl theme is ‘Girls’ vision for the future’.

This year’s theme conveys both the need for urgent action and persistent hope, driven by the power of girls’ voices and vision for the future.

Today’s generation of girls is disproportionately affected by global crises of climate, conflict, poverty and pushback on hard-won gains for human rights and gender equality. Too many girls are still denied their rights, restricting their choices and limiting their futures.

Yet, recent analysis shows that girls are not only courageous in the face of crisis, but hopeful for the future. Every day, they are taking action to realize a vision of a world in which all girls are protected, respected and empowered.

But girls cannot realize this vision alone. They need allies who listen to and respond to their needs.