True empowerment means making the world safer for girls

In South Africa, August celebrates the strength of women. The Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund’s Girl Power Project Against Violence reached over 17,000 women and girls in 2025-26. These discussions revealed unsafe streets, harassment at school, community violence, and digital abuse as prevalent concerns.

Yet, a hidden burden is that girls are conditioned to feel responsible for preventing potential violence. They are taught to be cautious about their whereabouts, attire, speech, trust, and online interactions. This shifts the responsibility to them, making safety a personal task. When harm occurs, blame often falls on the girl's choices—why was she there? Why did she trust them? Why did she share a photo? Why did she not report it sooner?

The girls participating in the Girl Power Project exhibit a mature understanding of danger, power, coercion, and risk. However, being well-versed in avoiding danger does not equate to empowerment. A girl who knows how to navigate danger may merely be adept at coping with a system that cannot be trusted. True empowerment lies in placing girls in safer environments and holding accountable the adults, institutions, and systems that should protect them.

Child protection cannot be solely the girl's responsibility. An intersectional approach is needed, acknowledging the connection between a child's safety and the well-being of their family. In schools, the Girl Power Project has enhanced reporting pathways, including My Safety Plan for children with autism and a WhatsApp reporting platform in Limpopo that logged 253 cases by March.

Research in KwaZulu-Natal found 42% of children reported schools as their primary support system, underscoring the vital role of teachers and schools.

Safe to Learn focuses on equipping teachers to safeguard children and refer incidents appropriately. In Delft, child protection forum partners strengthened authorities' capability and access to statutory services. In Lusikisiki and Thaba Nchu, revived child protection forums protect women and children together. Similar trends are emerging in digital spaces, where online platforms offer opportunities but also expose girls to harassment, coercion, stalking, threats, and non-consensual image sharing.

The prevailing response is often to advise girls to be more cautious, such as tightening privacy settings, sharing less, blocking offenders, and avoiding certain spaces. This places the primary responsibility on the child to make the global digital platform safe, which is unjust.

Technology companies must prioritize child safety by promptly removing harmful content, ensuring meaningful consequences for perpetrators, and providing accessible, responsive, and comprehensible reporting mechanisms. The responsibility should not be solely on the girl; institutions must act proactively to prevent harm. Women's strength should not be solely acknowledged for navigating unsafe conditions; instead, it should be a catalyst for demanding accountability.

This Women's Month should transcend mere celebration of resilience. It must also be a call for accountability. Recognizing women means supporting the individuals and organizations dedicated to protection. Schools must have functional safeguarding systems, survivors must be able to report violence without blame or dismissal, and institutions must intervene before harm occurs.

Most crucially, it means listening to girls. The Girl Power Project views girls as knowledgeable individuals with opinions and the right to participate in decisions affecting their lives. Let us celebrate courage this Women's Month, but also question why so much courage is required to navigate the world. A girl's safety is a fundamental right, not a reward for vigilance, obedience, or resilience.