The Invisible Barriers Girls Face

Girl Effect's new short film "Invisible Barriers" tackles the cultural and social underpinnings of gender inequalities in the world, with the intention of inspiring people across the globe to rethink the role of girls. Immersed in creative director and fashion designer Mushtashrik Mahbub's unique visual animation style and narrated by Nigerian-born performance poet, Bassey Ikpi, "Invisible Barriers" weaves together stories from a disillusioned girl's life. A tribute to the turmoils of girls whose lives have been shattered by abuses and injustices, "Invisible Barriers" is profoundly moving.

The film also celebrates technology, innovation and the media as a means to empower women and foster equal economic opportunity. It illuminates the idea that connectivity can transform the lives of women and girls as dramatically as awareness campaigns. It's a topic very dear to Girl Effect's CEO and former business adviser to British Prime Minister David Cameron, Farah Ramzan Golant: "Girl Effect has challenged the world to stop seeing girls as part of a global poverty problem and to see them instead as co-creators of new solutions. We are determined to help create a "new normal" for girls so they can overcome the negative attitudes and beliefs that hold them back. "

In the struggle for gender equality, technology can provide access to information and foster opportunity. Girl Effect's program focuses on building mobile online communities for underprivileged teenage girls in remote locations, giving them access to new ideas and innovative education tools. Girl Effect's mobile media network GEM that includes radio, print, music, chat shows and digital platforms, aims to inspire girls with stories, tips and advice. It's currently available in 40 countries and 24 languages. Farah explained " Girl Effect creates brands built for girls, by girls that harness the power of media and technology. "

Girl Effect is exploring the new opportunities for innovation in the nonprofit sector. What sets it apart from other organizations working on promoting gender equality according to Farah, is its emphasis on what she calls the 'demand side'. Although society has made significant strides towards gender equality and access to education, healthcare and financial services for women, their social status too often confines them to certain types of activity within the family structure: "Historically, development work to transform girls' lives has largely focused on the supply side – access to services such as clinics, schools, vaccinations and financial literacy. However, we consistently see girls getting passed over or denied access to the services they need ".

Working on the demand side means helping girls become active in public life and agents of change in their own communities. "Girls need their collective voices to be heard, loud and clear, at the community level -- otherwise no system will give them equal access. And before she can speak, she needs to believe that her words are worth hearing," says Farah.

Girl Effect helps women and girls identify themselves as catalysts for a gender-equal society by creating brands built for girls, by girls that harness the power of media and technology. "Our culture brands inform girls with critical knowledge (such as safety and health), inspire them with role models, link them to services -- and give them the confidence to demand that those services actually work for them. "

So far, the Girl Effect initiative has yielded indisputable results. In Rwanda, 75 percent of girls reading and listening to Girl Effect's Ni Nyampinga franchise (a media platform made for girls by girls that spans magazine, radio and mobile) say it has made them realize their self-worth and confidence. In Ethiopia, around 84 percent of girls following the Yegna radio drama say it has made them more confident. And 76 percent of girl listeners say it has inspired them to continue their education.

With "Invisible Barriers", Girl Effect provides another example of a successful collaboration between nonprofit organizations, businesses and media. Farah is determined to create a world in which girls and boys are equal members of society: "Creating a new normal for girls everywhere is an audacious goal. It's my belief that to secure a brighter future for the next generation of adolescent girls we need to tackle the negative attitudes and beliefs that hold them back."

Launched during the 2009 World Economic Forum summit in Davos (and championed as a movement by the NIKE Foundation in collaboration with the NoVo Foundation, United Nations Foundation and multiple partners), Girl Effect was designed as an initiative to stop seeing girls as part of a global poverty problem and to see them instead as creators of new solutions. Girl Effect became its own organisation in 2015 with a broader mandate to drive measurable change in girls' lives with an emphasis on connectivity, technology and content.