Poverty

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) reported that women now make up half of the population living with HIV in the Caribbean, compared to just 30 percent of the total in 1999. But among the 15-24 age group, women represent 62 percent of those living with HIV.

Millions of girls are not making it into school, despite a concerted international movement to push the cause forward. In some African countries, the gender gap is even widening. What's gone wrong? In Ethiopia, girls are sometimes abducted for marriage when they're no more than eight. In West Africa, they're recruited from poor rural families to work as domestics in coastal cities or neighbouring countries. In South Africa, a recent report by Human Rights Watch warns that sexual violence and abuse is hampering girls' access to education. And in Afghanistan, they've simply been barred from school under the Taleban regime.
Customs, poverty, fear and violence: girls still account for 60 percent of the estimated 113 million out-of-school children, and the majority live in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.

Youth panelists shared and highlighted the experiences and challenges of girls growing up in their four different countries, namely, Kenya, South Africa, Zambia and the Philippines. The girls were sharing at a discussion hosted by the United Nations Girls' Education Initiative (UNGEI) in New York. Some of the challenges highlighted include female genital mutilation, poverty, domestic violence, sexual violence and cultural and traditional practices that hamper girls' education.

Most women working in the informal sector are home based workers or street vendors.