Teenagers were on Thursday empowered to occupy influential offices in a mock exercise to mark the UN International Day of the Girl.
About 12 schoolgirls symbolically took over leadership roles in government agencies, UN organizations, donor agencies and humanitarian institutions.
Adut William Aken, 17, who hails from the Warrap State, stepped into the shoes of Roselyn Gama, the Gender Policy Advisor at the Netherlands Embassy in Juba.
Aken told Radio Tamazuj that she was happy to represent all girls and be a voice for all of them in the country.
“I was very happy taking over as a gender advisor because it really inspired me. I can’t really describe my happiness. It was absolutely good representing all girls and being the voice of the voiceless, outlining all the challenges they face,” she said.
She expressed her gratitude to UNICEF and the other partners for granting her the opportunity, adding that she learned many issues, including handling menstrual cycle, and personal hygiene.
The Netherlands Gender Policy Advisor, Roselyn Gama, underscored the significance of providing a platform for young girls to express their aspirations.
“Today is a very important day in my life and I believe in the life of Adut William as she takes on my role as an advisor. We just finished a meeting with UNICEF, our key partner in the WASH program,” said Gama.
“I believe her contribution was very well taken in because she was able to bring out the issues that the young people face and most importantly, she also emphasized the importance of taking in the voices of the young people when designing programs and tools for monitoring those programs.”
“I think the girls’ takeover is very important in increasing their access to leadership, but also inspiring them and how they can amplify voices of young people,” she said.
The girls’ takeover is part of Plan International South Sudan’s initiative to highlight the challenges facing girls to call for change that breaks barriers of discrimination.
The day’s discussions focused on gender equality, and the need to address challenges teenagers faced to create a more inclusive and responsible society.