In the context of International Day of the Girl 2022, two members of Plan International Ireland’s Youth Advisory Panel, Ciara O’Brien and Amarachukwu Onyegiri recently travelled to Geneva to put youth voices at the forefront of Ireland’s review of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
While there they participated in meetings with UN experts on children’s rights to raise awareness of issues related to education and gender-based violence in Ireland. The youth advocates also met with Ireland’s Ambassador Eamonn MacAodha, of the permanent Mission of Ireland to the United Nations, Geneva to advocate on behalf of young people in Ireland, especially women and girls who are often disproportionately affected by issues of gender-based violence.
Speaking about the experience, Amarachukwu said, “Having a background in International Relations, simply being in the UN was a ‘pinch me’ moment and participating in the process, from writing the thematic report to attending the session, was such a huge learning experience.”
Learn more about International Day of the Girl 2022.