UNICEF supplies and services support adolescent girls and help to ensure a safe environment where they can learn and thrive.
Right now, the lives of the most vulnerable children hang in the balance as conflicts and crises jeopardize the care and protection that they deserve. Dependable, uninterrupted and effective foreign aid is critical to the well-being of millions of children. Please write your members of Congress and urge them to support ongoing U.S. investments in foreign assistance.
Building an equitable world
Equipped with resources and opportunities to reach their full potential, the world’s 600 million adolescent girls can become a generation of female change-makers. But most adolescent girls around the world live in poverty, without access to basic services, and face disproportionate discrimination and inequality.
Delivering supplies and services that promote adolescent girls’ health and safety is one of the ways UNICEF works to ensure equitable rights, resources and opportunities for all children.
1. Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine
Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer in women worldwide, causing more than 300,000 deaths yearly, mainly in low- and middle-income countries.
More than 95 percent of cervical cancer cases are caused by the human papillomavirus, and these can be prevented by a safe and effective vaccine. Studies have shown an almost 90 percent reduction in cervical cancer in girls who received the vaccine. In 2024, UNICEF delivered 35.9 million HPV vaccines to 49 countries.
“Before, I had heard false rumors about the HPV vaccine and I was reluctant. Now I took it because I want to live a long time and I don’t want to get sick and die from HPV infections,” said 12-year-old Miheret from Ethiopia, after she received her HPV vaccination.
2. Hygiene products
Millions of girls and women are unable to manage their menstrual cycle in a dignified and healthy manner. This has far-reaching consequences as it restricts their mobility and personal choices, affecting school attendance and participation in social life. These challenges are particularly acute in humanitarian crises.
“I was displaced with my family from Gaza City to the city of Rafah in the south of Gaza,” said Alma, a 12-year-old girl who received a package of UNICEF’s hygiene products following the escalation of hostilities with Israel. “I was unable to bring all my belongings with me. This package will help me keep my personal hygiene much better.”
The kits contain essential items such as a blanket, wet wipes, intimate soap, underwear, a head scarf and three packages of sanitary pads.
In Ethiopia, 16-year-old Workalem used to stay home for up to seven days when she was menstruating, missing classes.
Things changed for Workalem when UNICEF opened a menstrual hygiene management (MHM) room at her school where girls can rest, wash and receive menstrual counseling and sanitary pads and soaps.
“The lack of access to menstrual products and school bathrooms with no water were the reasons I missed school,” says Workalem. “But after joining the gender club, I gained a better understanding and awareness. The MHM room also provides me with sanitary pads, panties and soaps.”
Menstrual health and hygiene interventions, including access to supplies, can help girls stay in school. UNICEF procures and delivers various kinds of hygiene and menstrual hygiene products as part of its commitment to improve access to materials and facilities to ensure that adolescent girls and all menstruating individuals can manage their menstruation safely and with dignity.
3. Water supply
Women and girls aged 15 and older are primarily responsible for water collection in 7 out of 10 households without supply. Girls under 15 are also more likely than boys under 15 to fetch water. In most cases, women and girls make long journeys to collect water, losing time from education, work and leisure, and putting themselves at risk of injury and dangers en route.
“I used to walk one hour to bring water and had to stand in the queue for one or two hours to get water,” says Zahra, 10, from Afghanisan. “I would feel tired and could not find time for my school assignments.”
UNICEF works to ensure that more communities gain access to water services that are safe, sustainable and able to withstand climate change, conflict and natural disasters. This work includes the installation of man-powered water pumps and the construction of solar-powered supply systems.
4. Gender-inclusive toilets in schools
Globally, millions of girls and women still lack adequate facilities for menstrual hygiene management. The lack of separate toilets with doors that can be safely closed or of ways to dispose of used sanitary pads and water to wash hands, means that women and girls face challenges in keeping their menstrual hygiene in a private, safe and dignified manner.
Lack of proper sanitary facilities in schools can have lifelong consequences. Girls who regularly skip school when they are menstruating are more likely to fall behind and drop out of school altogether. Girls who are not enrolled at school are at higher risk of child marriage and other forms of exploitation, and more likely to have children early and live in poverty.
UNICEF’s construction projects aim to reduce the key barriers to girls’ education through the building gender-sensitive water, sanitation and hygiene facilities.
5. Safe environments in UNICEF high-performance tents
Armed conflict, natural disasters and humanitarian emergencies can drastically weaken a society’s ability to protect women and girls from gender-based violence. More than 370 million girls and women alive today – or 1 in 8 – experienced rape or sexual assault before the age of 18. In fragile settings, girls face an even greater risk, with the prevalence of rape and sexual assault in childhood slightly more than 1 in 4.
UNICEF works worldwide to prevent and respond to gender-based violence in emergencies. Creating spaces where girls and women can gain access to education, critical information, care and protection is one way UNICEF works to prevent and respond to gender-based violence in emergencies.
As the international community seeks to create a more equitable world, we have a unique opportunity to overcome the challenges and give adolescent girls the freedom and power they need to lead and thrive. Your contribution to UNICEF is more important than ever. Please donate today.