Over 130 million girls around the world are denied an education and Elijah Buol, ECCQ Director has decided to do something about it.
This year, Elijah became an Ambassador for One Girl, a not-for-profit organisation based in Australia. One Girl works in Sierra Leone, Uganda and partners with many organisations in other African countries.
One Girl believes every girl on the planet has the right to an education. No matter where she is born, how much her family earns, what religion she adheres to, or what her culture says, EVERY girl deserves the opportunity to learn, grow, and be the best she can be.
In Sierra Leone, only 40 percent of girls old enough to go to high school are actually enrolled. Of this, only 16 percent go on to complete high school. In fact, a girl born in Sierra Leone is more likely to be sexually assaulted than she is to go to high school.
Elijah has decided to counter these statistics and has taken real action to create change across the globe by joining the ‘do it in a dress’ campaign.
“As a proud father of four children of whom two are girls, I believe that all children are equally important; they have the same rights and deserve the same opportunities and they should not be denied any opportunity,” he said.
“Receiving an education is a right every child should have regardless of his or her gender. Every child deserves to have access to education, and by denying girls an education we are increasing the chances of a motherless childhood for so many. A girl’s education not only provides knowledge, it gives them power and awareness over their own lives, which benefits all in the long run.
“Girls with dreams become women with vision, so let’s create a world where this vision runs wild and is realised freely. Educating a girl is creating a better world for tomorrow with equal opportunities.”
From August 15th to October 31st, Elijah will be participating in the campaign and needs your help to reach his goal. Elijah has made a bold pledge to raise $6000, which is enough to educate 20 girls in Africa for one year.
ECCQ CEO Garry Page says he is please that Elijah is not only contributing to many communities here is Queensland and Australia but has taken on global initiatives as well.
“He brings that community spirit and several years of community development work experience to ECCQ. We are proud to support Elijah and the great work he does for others,” he said.
Just $300 is enough to educate a girl for a whole year in Africa, creating lasting change for her and her community. So if you’d like to support Elijah and change the lives of vulnerable girls and young women, please click here.
