In rural communities, deep rooted socio-cultural norms prevents many adolescent girls from achieving their aspirations. An adolescent girl, who is not empowered, gets married early and becomes a young mother even when she is neither physically or emotionally ready. Additionally, she herself is often malnourished, resulting in poor future maternal and infant health. As a result, both the mother and the child suffer from malnutrition, low birth weight, maternal health risks and child developmental stunting. By investing in adolescents, especially girls, we aspire to create agents of multi-generational change. Investing in girls offers the biggest social returns and addresses multiple social issues. If India enrolled 1% more girls in secondary school, its GDP would rise by USD 5.5 billion (source: UNESC study).
adolescents as change agents
