Youth empowerment
We enable children and young people to understand and defend their rights.
Plan International’s youth empowerment programs support young people, both domestically and internationally, as they lead change within their communities. Through our Youth Advisory Board and Youth Leadership Academy, youth — particularly young women — enhance their leadership skills and bring a strong voice to develop, guide and evaluate Plan’s programs. And through our unique approach to development, GirlEngage, the voices of girls and young women are what inspire and inform our programming for advancing girls’ rights.
Across the world girls suffer injustices every day simply because they are young and female. We aim to help the girls’ rights movement to grow, taking it from grassroots to global, so girls have greater control in their lives. We encourage boys and young men to respect girls and women, empowering them to become allies in the fight for gender equality.
Our programs encourage girls to promote equality and their internal power, and enable boys to self-reflect and identify the harmful consequences of toxic masculinity in their cultures. By working together as teams, girls and boys in our programs build a more equitable tomorrow.
Your impact in
youth empowerment
- 1.1m
- girls supported to be active citizens
- 4.5m
- children and adults reached with youth empowerment programs
We have a long way to go … but we are making impact along the way. I feel that I have a ball of fire and it’s always warm and it’s always shining and I have a long way to go, but I’m ready for it. … I hope my story empowers other girls and helps them make a change.
— Fatima
Youth activist who participated in a Plan leadership project in Lebanon. Photo: Hasan Noureddine, ©️ Plan International Lebanon
Your gift to Plan International USA will be used where needed most, to help create sustainable change and address the root causes of poverty and inequality. Donations can support programs, innovation, and infrastructure required to deliver our programs to girls and children worldwide, in areas such as protection, education, health, sanitation, disaster relief and economic empowerment.