Our purpose and ambition

At present, the European Union (EU) and its Member States are one of the world’s largest and most influential development and humanitarian actors. It has the potential to positively affect the lives of hundreds of millions of children, which is why influencing its policies, programmes and actions matter more than ever. 

Our ambition

We have a bold ambition, to advance children’s rights and equality for girls in the EU’s external action. Through our actions, we contribute to ensuring that 100 million girls: 

To deliver real results for girls and children in a rapidly changing world, we push the EU to step up, act decisively and deliver real impact. Our work is guided by three clear priorities: 

Contributing to a global girls’ rights movement

By combining evidence-based advocacy with bold, impactful campaigning and communications, we strengthen Plan International’s global movement for girls’ rights so that girls worldwide can learn, lead, decide and thrive.  

Beyond embedding equality for girls across all our policy, advocacy, communications and funding work, we focus on three key initiatives that aim to contribute to transformative change:  

1. Promoting girls’ leadership and empowerment, supporting girls to take the lead in their communities and shape their futures. 

2.  Working with girls’ rights networks, building strong partnerships to amplify collective power and influence.  

3. Raising girls’ voices in decisions which affect them, ensuring they are recognised as experts in their own lives and taken into account in policymaking. 

Ensuring all children have the education and skills they need to succeed

Inclusive quality education and skills are the cornerstones of children’s rights and lay the foundations for sustainable development.  Without access to quality education and completion of secondary school, the transition to adulthood and access to the labour market become challenging for many young people. 

Today, around 272 million children are out of school – mostly girls and young women – are  out of school, employment or training, leaving them at greater risk of entering unstable, low-paid jobs or having no work at all Natural and man-made crises and conflicts aren’t helping the situation: in the past decade 75 million children in 35 crisis-affected countries have been denied their right to education. 

We therefore work with the EU to change this situation. By supporting young people – especially girls and young women – to gain the education and skills needed to succeed, they can shape their own futures and earn a decent living.  We push the EU to step up as a global leader, ensuring children in conflict and emergency settings can learn in safety, and we hold it accountable for its financial commitments to education in emergencies. 

Securing more and better EU investment in poverty eradication and human development, with a focus on girls 

While the EU (including European Institutions and Member States) remains the world’s largest development and humanitarian donor, its aid budgets are under unprecedent pressure at a time of growing global need. Despite the increasing needs, the EU and global donors, are reducing and refocusing aid budgets, with some European Member States opposing pro-poor official development assistance.  

We are determined to change this. We strongly urge the EU to allocate sufficient, fair, and effective resources to deliver on sustainable development, poverty reduction, humanitarian action and advance children’s rights- with girls and young women at the centre of every decision. We advocate for annual and multiannual EU budgets which are age-sensitive, gender transformative and focused on real impact. 

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