What I learned as a leader in Nigerian Girl Guides — Assembly

“Someday our advocacy efforts will influence policy decisions that address the unique needs and experiences of girls and gender-sensitive teacher training that will empower educators with the tools to meet the needs of all students and uproot gender inequality in education. “ (Photo credit: Grace Ekpu)

22-year-old Deborah Evbotokhai knows all too well the obstacles that impact young women in Nigeria. She writes about how her advocacy led her to champion girls’ education through the Nigerian Girl Guides Association.

Limited access to decent education is a serious concern for many girls and young women, particularly those living in rural areas of my country. In certain regions of Nigeria, poverty and other factors lead to the early marriage of young girls — sometimes as early as ten years old.

This has a far-reaching impact on girls, especially the education of girls in Nigeria and other developing countries around the world. In the wake of increased banditry, poverty, and kidnapping, it is even more difficult to convince parents to let their daughters embark on the now-risky venture of going to school.

During my elementary school years, I noticed a lot of young girls remained at home to help their parents with housework, sell products for extra income to the family business, carrying these items on their heads through great distances just to make sales even during school hours. This gave me great concern at the time.

On one vacation, my younger sister and I gathered a few youngsters in our compound and we played the teacher-pupil game — our attempt to teach our friends what we had learned at school that period. I was astounded by how quickly the children caught up with whatever issue we talked about; in this moment, I realized I wanted to make a difference in my own way.

With this in mind, I joined the Nigerian Girl Guides Association (NGGA) in 2014 through my elder sister and began my advocacy efforts in 2019. Since then, it's been a very fulfilling and eye-opening experience. I have experienced not just the problems, but also the enormous potential of adolescent girls in my country. This has inspired me to work for a more egalitarian society.

When I was younger, many of the girls I graduated primary school with did not continue their secondary education because of poverty. I recall a girl who usually sat behind me having to drop out of school to support her younger siblings when their parents died and others had to withdraw from school so that their brothers could continue.

Through advocacy efforts with the Nigerian Girl Guides (GAGE Project), my focus was on spreading awareness about the importance of educating girls and its long-term benefits for individuals, families, and society at large. This I did with the help of social media, advocacy workshops, and engagements with school children, parents, school principals as well as community leaders.

Through the GAGE Initiative, a partnership between the Nigerian Girl Guides Association and Education As a Vaccine, supported by Malala Fund, we gathered girl advocates, like myself, to create the Gage Declaration — a document that demands an equitable and safe education in respect to girls — which we used to engage various stakeholders and politicians and hold them accountable to their commitment to girls’ education.

“Educating girls not only enhances our personal development but also leads to better health outcomes, reduced poverty, and overall societal progress.”

— Deborah Evbotokhai

An important aspect of my work has been the engagement with other amazing girl education advocates, government agencies and policymakers through focus group discussions.

I even sat in a meeting with Malala on her 26th birthday which she marked in Abuja. Being in the same safe space with other education advocates, discussing our unique journeys and experiences in the presence of someone I look up to was really fulfilling and it made me believe that my advocacy work is being noticed.

“Being in the same safe space with other education advocates, discussing our unique journeys and experiences in the presence of someone I look up to was really fulfilling and it made me believe that my advocacy work is being noticed.“ (Photo credit: Grace Ekpu)

I believe someday that our advocacy efforts will influence policy decisions that address the unique needs and experiences of girls and gender-sensitive teacher training that will empower educators with the tools to meet the needs of all students and uproot gender inequality in education.

Educating girls not only enhances our personal development but also leads to better health outcomes, reduced poverty, and overall societal progress. I hope to use the Nigerian Girl Guides Association as a platform to create a safe and inclusive learning environment that amplifies my voice and the voices of women and girls across Nigeria.

Evbotokhai Deborah Omata

(she/her) is a Young Girl Leader with the Nigerian Girl Guides Association. She is passionate about the well-being of young girls and making a change in the little way I can. I enjoy traveling and finding new adventures in my spare time.