The Girl Pledge Nearly 50 % of all sexual assaults, worldwide, are on girls under the age of 15 years.

One out of every two girls in India becomes a child bride. Girls who are married young are more likely to face violence, abuse and exposure to Sexually T ransmitted Diseases. And these are just some of the startling facts surrounding the Girl Child today. Welcome to the Girl Pledge 2013. Our first step in making this world a gender-eq ual space. I PLEDGE Make a difference WE PLEDGE Together, make a difference Is it enough to just Pledge? The power of a pledge can never be under-estimated. Nations have transformed and revolutions have happened. And often, it all began with a simple pledge. Hand t o heart and the collective commitment of millions of people has its own role in a huge socio-cultural revolution. When millions of pledges convert into a lifetime of actions and attitudinal chan ges, the life of girl children all over the world will begin to change. Forever. What am I pledging for? In this campaign, I am pledging for the Right of every Girl Child to: Be born into a world where boys and girls are equally valued Live in a safe and secure environment without fear of abuse or violence Go to school, study and be empowered to take decisions for herself Marry only after the legal age of 18 years to a man who is atleast 21 years old so that she may live and develop to her fullest potential as the child that she truly is Eat nourishing and nutritive foods taking care of not just her body, but her mind and her spirit too GIRL CHILD FACT SHEET I PLEDGE Make a difference WE PLEDGE Together, make a difference I Pledge I Pledge that: I will marry only after the legal age, which is 21 for boys and 18 for girls . I will not take dowry. I will not participate in the marriage ceremony of anyone who is below the l egal age of marriage. I will also persuade and inform my relatives and community not to do so. I will not allow sex determination tests to be carried out in my family. I w ill work as a community leader along with other members to stop sex determinatio n tests from being carried out by my community members. I will uphold and honour the rights of the girls and support every action in my family for better education, nutrition and protection of the girls and also ensure that she gets her legal share of property or inheritance I will always respect women and girls and never behave in an inappropriate m

anner with them whether at home, on the streets, at my workplace or anywhere else. I will do everything in my power to protect all children from violence and c hild abuse physical, emotional or neglect of any other manner. I, as a youth leader, will influence all people around me to respect honour and protect the girls and women in the family and community in every manner.

Act Now I have taken the Pledge. Now what? Pledges impact both actions and attitude. Attitudes that bring honour and value to women and girls in the day-to-day life. And tangible actions that can directly impact vulnerable girls, everywhere. So what is an 'Act For Change'? Taking home tuitions for the girl child of your house-help Sponsoring her books, school bags and tiffin boxes Organizing fun-filled events for children living in slums Starting a university lobby group against dowry and female feticide Conducting discussions in slums and rural areas teaching girls and their mot hers to eat right Contributing to educating a girl child Get original. Look around and begin to see opportunities to help girl-children i n anyway possible. Through individual and group events in your homes, communitie s, schools, colleges and organisations, plan for inspiring actions that will tou ch the lives of girl children in a truly sustainable way. Share your experiences with the world: Tell us your 'Act for Change' story and your story could inspire many more like you to lead their own'Acts for Change' initiatives.