#StandWithGirls in the Philippines!

Dear Friends,

I am writing to share an update report showing all the developments we have done so far.

As you know the pandemic made it difficult for us to do our regular practices, therefore we had to adapt and created an COVID-19 response for our Girls Got This project.

Girls Got This has established a Mentorship Champions Network. This brings together local and global mentors who believe in the GGT mission, to be role models for the girls and to raise awareness of the project in the Philippines and abroad.

A core activity of the network has been the highly successful global ‘stand with girls’ campaign, in which high-profile athletes, media influencers and business leaders from all over the world are raising awareness of the problems faced by girls in the Philippines, especially now during the lockdown. The network now features more than 70 'girl champions' role models to help girls. The reach of the network exceeds 8 million people across social media platforms.

FundLife has set-up another GlobalGiving campaign to raise money for emergency survival packs for families who have no safety net against the loss of work and income. Here, the #StandWithGirls project made sure that there was a special focus on girls, women and young mothers. We have distributed more than 475 special hygiene kits for girls, women and young mothers and delivered over 21,500 foodpacks to different districts in Cebu. Our coaches also supported a community-led soup kitchen for more than 200 children in AFC Village Palo, Leyte

We have also created a special ‘Coronavirus Prevention Individual Session Plan’ to share safety measures for COVID-19 and explain why social distancing is so important. In the session plan we focused on home-based exercises, proper hand-washing technique and challenges for children to practise: all to boost their welfare and help minimise the negative impact of COVID-19. 

Girls Got This Champions and our own Girls Got This coaches have created additional videos for girls to follow to stay healthy and entertained during lockdown, which we share on all our social media platforms and groups. These videos feature a small warm-up program, technical exercises and challenges for the girls - along with suggestions for house-friendly alternatives to footballs. Maintaining communication networks to keep children in contact (virtually) with one another and with role models. 

Thank you for all your support, which is what makes our work possible. 

For more information, follow our Girls Got This on Facebook or Instagram!

Please stay safe during these difficult days for us all.

Best wishes,

Melissa Karadana