mustbe HERCHOICE
Making girls independent by providing them bikes. It may sound simple, but turns out to be a powerful tool to empower girls and even reduce child marriage rates. As part of Her Choice’s strategy to improve access to education, Bedari -Her Choice’s local partner in Pakistan- has experimented with the strategy of providing bicycles to over 70 girls. The results have been impressive.
The bicycle plan is a seemingly simple programme, but requires a momentous change in mindset which is symbolic for the things Her Choice wants to achieve. With the support of Her Choice alliance member ICDI the Pakistani bicycle project is a great success: people in the community have let go of their fear and bias towards girls moving around freely and see the value of this. These ‘small’ initiatives show that investing in girls, increasing their say over their own lives and mobility, in no way has to cause dishonor or shame to any community.
#mustbeherchoice #endchildmarriage
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