EU for Girls: Civil society assessment of EU policies (2019-2023) advancing girls’ rights

The European Week of Action for Girls is a week-long series of events and activities organised around the International Day of the Girl Child on October 11, 2023, by a coalition of civil society organisations. The goal of the EWAG coalition is to ensure girls’ voices and aspirations are heard by the EU institutions, and that girls’ rights are at the core of the EU’s external action.

For more than 10 years, EWAG has been creating a space for engagement with the European decision makers in Brussels.

EWAG has been calling on the EU to advance girls’ rights by focusing on five pillars:

• Promote Equal Political and Civic Participation
• Advance Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR)
• Eradicate Harmful Gender Norms and Stereotypes
• Boost Youth Economic Empowerment
• Promote Inclusive and Quality Education

As the European Commission leadership and European Parliament approach the end of their term, EWAG is looking back at the past years since the start of the current mandate in 2019, to assess EU policies and actions in terms of their contribution to promoting girls’ rights.

This paper provides an overview of positive advancements and shortcomings, and puts forward a set of recommendations on how to better advance girls’ rights in EU external action onwards.