Girls Today for Tomorrow engages girls ages 10 – 17 years old, in the life-skills development program which builds resilience and improves access to quality, protective and continuous Education for Girls. This is important as they develop their collective strategies and skills to keep themselves safe, be self-reliant, and help their communities live up to expectations for better treatment. The program addresses the intersecting vulnerability to gender-based violence (GBV) that girls face, the lack of girls-led advocacy around systemic violence, and the need for a system to transform negative norms, attitudes, and stereotypes toward girls.

Why is Girls Today for Tomorrow important?

Research has shown that there are several key challenges at individual, household, and community levels that militate against girls’ completion of the education in northern Nigeria. These include the under-valuing of girls’ education by parents, caregivers, and communities; the burden of care and domestic responsibilities which either makes them not go to school or not have time for their homework. Sociocultural barriers such as early marriage where girls are married off at very young ages because of cultural practices, and therefore are unlikely to return to school. Economic barriers make families take decisions against girls’ education in times of lean resources. Meeting up with the direct and indirect costs of education becomes a huge challenge for families.
In most places in Nigeria, adolescent girls are not encouraged to have ambitions, so life skills programs are an opportunity for them to discover new aspirations for their present and future personal and professional lives. Girls also see their daily realities reflected in GT4T program content as they become empowered individuals.
GT4T program reflects girls’ daily realities and improves/develops their life skills such as confidentiality, capability, and empowerment to handle difficult situations that life brings, enabling them to pursue their goals.
GT4T focuses on six core topic areas in improving/developing the basic skills girls need, and the assets necessary skills to decrease risk and increase safety for girls:

• Trust
• Social & Emotional Skills
• Health & Hygiene
• Safety
• Solidarity
• Visioning

The Big Smile foundation through the Girls Today for Tomorrow initiative, which was launched in 2021 is building girls’ resilience through improving girls’ skills, access to quality and protected learning, improving continuous education, and empowerment opportunity for girls. TBSF understands the deep-rooted issues and barriers facing girls’ development and learning and is committed to lasting changes by working with communities, families, girls, and the government.