Empowering Girls. Unlocking Potential. Shaping Futures.
Helping Girls Find Their Voices, Discover Their Strengths and Build the Confidence to Shape Their Futures.
Every girl has aspirations, abilities and possibilities waiting to unfold.
She may dream of becoming a scientist, entrepreneur, engineer, teacher, artist, community leader or something she has not yet discovered. Whatever her aspirations, she deserves the opportunity to learn, explore, make informed choices and develop the confidence to pursue them.
Yet, for many girls, the transition from childhood to adulthood is shaped by barriers that can limit their opportunities before they have had the chance to discover their potential.
At ChangePoint Advancement Initiative for Development (C-PAID), we believe that no girl’s future should be defined by limited opportunity, harmful expectations or circumstances beyond her control.
GIRLS FORWARD is C-PAID’s flagship adolescent girls’ empowerment programme, designed to equip girls with the knowledge, confidence, skills, mentorship and support needed to navigate adolescence and prepare for meaningful futures.
Through education, STEM and digital learning, leadership development, life skills, health literacy and supportive mentoring relationships, GIRLS FORWARD seeks to create environments where girls can discover their strengths, make informed decisions and pursue their ambitions.
Our goal is not simply to tell girls that they can achieve great things. It is to help create practical opportunities through which they can develop the capabilities and support systems to move forward.
When girls are supported to remain engaged in learning, develop their abilities and make informed choices, they gain stronger foundations for shaping their own futures.
Adolescence is a defining stage of personal development. It is a period when young people begin to develop greater independence, understand their identities, build relationships and make decisions that may influence their educational and personal futures.
For girls, this transition can bring particular challenges.
Unequal educational opportunities, financial constraints, harmful social expectations, inadequate access to reliable health information, discrimination, online safety risks and limited exposure to positive role models can restrict girls’ confidence and participation.
Some girls face pressure to discontinue their education or assume adult responsibilities prematurely. Others remain in school but lack opportunities for mentoring, leadership, career exploration or meaningful engagement with technology and innovation.
The consequences can extend beyond adolescence. Limited opportunities at this stage may influence access to higher education, employment, entrepreneurship, financial independence and participation in public life.
GIRLS FORWARD recognises that girls need more than encouragement. They need access to relevant knowledge, supportive relationships, appropriate services and environments where their voices are respected.
Our approach will therefore connect educational development with personal agency, confidence, future readiness and age-appropriate wellbeing support.
UNICEF’s analysis also highlighted the potential long-term social and economic gains from expanding girls’ secondary education in Northern Nigeria. The findings reinforce the importance of combining educational participation with interventions that address wider barriers to girls’ development. These are national contextual figures, not C-PAID programme outcomes.
We envision a society where adolescent girls have equitable opportunities to develop their abilities, exercise their voices, make informed choices and pursue fulfilling futures without discrimination or avoidable barriers.
To empower adolescent girls through education, mentorship, leadership development, digital and life skills, health literacy and supportive partnerships that strengthen their capabilities, agency and future opportunities.
GIRLS FORWARD seeks to support adolescent girls during a period when educational choices, personal experiences, social expectations and access to information can significantly influence their development.
Our programme priorities are to:
Support girls’ engagement with learning, educational progression and access to opportunities that encourage continued education.
Introduce girls to relevant STEM, digital, creative and practical skills that broaden their understanding of possible educational and career pathways.
Help girls recognise their abilities, express their views, participate meaningfully and develop age-appropriate leadership capabilities.
Provide reliable, age-appropriate information that supports personal wellbeing, healthy choices and appropriate help-seeking.
Support girls to understand their rights, recognise risks, develop decision-making capabilities and access appropriate protection resources.
Connect girls with positive mentors, educational institutions, trusted adults and supportive peer communities.
Girls have different interests, aspirations, experiences and developmental needs. GIRLS FORWARD is therefore organised around six complementary pathways that can be implemented independently or combined within integrated projects.
Keep Learning. Keep Growing. Keep Moving Forward.
See the pathway ↓Discover Science. Explore Technology. Imagine More.
See the pathway ↓Her Voice Matters. Her Leadership Begins Now.
See the pathway ↓Healthy Choices. Stronger Confidence. Better Futures.
See the pathway ↓Preparing for Life. Exploring Possibilities.
See the pathway ↓Protecting Dignity. Strengthening Awareness. Supporting Choice.
See the pathway ↓Keep Learning. Keep Growing. Keep Moving Forward.
Education, Learning Confidence and School Retention
Education can expand girls’ choices, strengthen their confidence and create pathways into further learning, careers and economic participation.
GIRLS FORWARD LEARN seeks to support adolescent girls’ educational engagement by addressing selected barriers to learning and providing opportunities for academic enrichment, mentoring and future planning.
The pathway will work with relevant educational and community partners to encourage continued participation in education, particularly during key transition periods.
Girls with stronger educational engagement, improved learning confidence and better awareness of opportunities for continued education.
Discover Science. Explore Technology. Imagine More.
STEM, Digital Literacy and Innovation
Girls should have opportunities to explore science, technology, engineering and mathematics without being constrained by stereotypes about what they can learn or achieve.
GIRLS FORWARD STEM provides age-appropriate exposure to scientific discovery, technology, digital literacy and creative problem-solving.
The pathway aims to make STEM accessible, engaging and relevant while helping girls develop confidence in exploring subjects and opportunities where they may be underrepresented.
Girls with stronger digital confidence, increased interest in STEM and improved awareness of educational and professional opportunities in technology and innovation.
Her Voice Matters. Her Leadership Begins Now.
Confidence, Leadership and Personal Agency
Girls develop leadership capabilities when they have opportunities to express themselves, contribute ideas, make decisions and participate in matters affecting their lives.
GIRLS FORWARD LEAD seeks to build confidence, communication, self-awareness and responsible leadership through practical experiences and supportive mentorship.
The pathway encourages girls to recognise their strengths, respect others, collaborate effectively and develop the confidence to participate in school and community activities.
Girls with improved confidence, communication capabilities, decision-making skills and opportunities for meaningful participation.
Healthy Choices. Stronger Confidence. Better Futures.
Health Literacy, Wellbeing and Personal Development
Understanding health and wellbeing is an important part of navigating adolescence.
GIRLS FORWARD WELL provides girls with reliable, age-appropriate information that supports personal wellbeing, healthy relationships, dignity and informed decision-making.
The pathway will be developed with appropriate healthcare, educational and safeguarding expertise to ensure that information is accurate, suitable for participants’ ages and responsive to their circumstances.
Girls with improved health literacy, greater confidence in understanding their wellbeing and better awareness of when and where to seek appropriate support.
Preparing for Life. Exploring Possibilities.
Future Readiness, Life Skills and Career Exploration
The transition towards adulthood brings new decisions about education, careers, relationships, money and personal responsibilities.
GIRLS FORWARD READY seeks to equip adolescent girls with foundational life skills and opportunities to explore different futures.
The pathway emphasises practical knowledge, informed decision-making and exposure to positive role models rather than encouraging premature entry into adult employment or commercial activity.
Girls with stronger life skills, clearer educational and career aspirations, and improved confidence in planning for future opportunities.
Protecting Dignity. Strengthening Awareness. Supporting Choice.
Rights Awareness, Personal Safety and Support Pathways
Every girl has the right to safety, dignity, education and protection from abuse, exploitation and harmful practices.
GIRLS FORWARD SAFE seeks to strengthen girls’ awareness of their rights, personal safety and the support available when they experience risks or need assistance.
The pathway will prioritise age-appropriate education, safe participation and partnerships with qualified child protection professionals and recognised service providers.
Girls with improved knowledge of their rights, stronger personal safety awareness and better understanding of trusted support and referral pathways.
GIRLS FORWARD is intended to combine structured learning with practical, interactive experiences that make development relevant and engaging.
Subject to funding, delivery capacity and partnerships, proposed activities include the following.
A structured development experience combining confidence building, communication, leadership, decision-making and personal goal setting.
Hands-on STEM and digital learning activities, including scientific exploration, introductory coding, innovation challenges and exposure to women in technology.
Small-group mentoring opportunities connecting girls with appropriately vetted professionals, educators and role models who can provide guidance and encouragement.
Academic enrichment, education transition support, learning motivation and selected school retention activities designed around identified needs.
Career discovery sessions, educational visits, workplace exposure opportunities where appropriate and interactions with women working across different professions.
School-based and community-based clubs providing continuity in learning, leadership, creativity, wellbeing and peer engagement.
Age-appropriate holiday activities combining learning, confidence building, digital skills, creativity, wellbeing and personal development.
These interventions can be delivered as individual sponsored projects or combined within longer-term programmes, depending on resources and community needs.
GIRLS FORWARD is designed primarily for adolescent girls aged approximately 10 to 19 years.
This range covers different stages of adolescence, each with distinct developmental, educational and safeguarding considerations. Activities will therefore be differentiated rather than applying one curriculum to all participants.
Girls with disabilities, girls attending different school types, girls in rural communities and girls from different socioeconomic backgrounds should have opportunities to participate.
Some funded interventions may specifically prioritise girls experiencing educational, geographic or socioeconomic disadvantages. The programme’s overall identity, however, remains centred on advancing adolescent girls rather than defining them primarily through vulnerability.
Each stage of adolescence has its own emphasis:
Our proposed programme approach brings together practical learning, mentoring, supportive environments and relevant institutional partnerships.
The programme will place particular emphasis on girls’ participation in the design and evaluation of activities, ensuring that their experiences inform the interventions intended to support them.
We seek to engage adolescent girls, educators, families and community stakeholders to understand their aspirations, opportunities, barriers and development priorities.
We will design age-appropriate learning activities that strengthen educational confidence, digital skills, leadership, personal development and health literacy.
We aim to establish supportive spaces where girls can learn, express ideas, ask questions, develop friendships and participate without discrimination or intimidation.
Mentorship, educational partnerships and appropriate referral arrangements can provide guidance and continuity beyond individual learning sessions.
We intend to assess programme participation, learning outcomes, confidence, educational engagement and other relevant changes using ethical, child-appropriate methods.
GIRLS FORWARD will involve children and young people at important developmental stages. Safeguarding must therefore be embedded in every aspect of programme design and delivery.
C-PAID recognises the responsibility to provide safe learning environments, respect participants’ dignity and establish clear procedures for preventing and responding to harm.
Our proposed safeguarding arrangements will include:
Role-based vetting, safeguarding training, codes of conduct and appropriate supervision of personnel, facilitators, volunteers and mentors.
Suitable consent, communication and participation arrangements, taking account of participants’ age, legal status and applicable requirements.
Structured, supervised mentoring with clear boundaries, approved communication channels and safeguards against inappropriate one-to-one contact.
Accessible procedures for raising concerns, with appropriate referral pathways for child protection, healthcare and specialist support.
Controls concerning online activities, photographs, recordings, digital communication, personal information and technology-based learning.
Activities that protect girls from discrimination, harassment, humiliation, exploitation and other inappropriate treatment.
Health and personal development content delivered within appropriate educational, professional and safeguarding boundaries.
All activities will be guided by the best interests of participating children and the need for additional safeguards where participants are under 18.
Girls do not experience adolescence in identical ways.
Their opportunities may be influenced by family income, geography, disability, educational access, language, social expectations and other circumstances.
GIRLS FORWARD seeks to make its activities inclusive while recognising that meaningful access sometimes requires additional support.
Depending on project needs and available resources, this may involve accessible learning venues, community-based delivery, appropriate learning materials, support for participation costs and collaboration with organisations experienced in disability inclusion or educational access.
We also recognise the importance of engaging families, educators and community stakeholders.
Efforts to advance girls’ opportunities are more sustainable when the environments around them become supportive of their education, wellbeing and aspirations.
GIRLS FORWARD aims to contribute to measurable improvements in girls’ learning, skills, confidence, agency and future readiness.
Girls demonstrate greater confidence in learning and improved awareness of pathways for continued education.
Participants strengthen relevant digital capabilities and become more confident exploring science, technology and innovation.
Girls demonstrate progress in self-expression, teamwork, participation and age-appropriate decision-making.
Participants improve their understanding of personal health, emotional wellbeing and appropriate help-seeking.
Girls develop greater confidence in identifying goals, expressing preferences, understanding choices and participating in decisions affecting them.
Participants become more aware of their rights, personal safety and appropriate protection resources.
Girls gain exposure to mentors, educational opportunities and role models who can support their aspirations.
We will seek to evaluate outcomes through suitable baseline and follow-up assessments, programme records, participant feedback and appropriately verified educational or developmental indicators.
Longer-term claims about school completion, reduced child marriage or economic outcomes will only be made where programme evidence supports them.
GIRLS FORWARD aligns with key objectives of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
Supporting girls’ learning, educational engagement, skills development and opportunities for further education.
Strengthening girls’ capabilities, agency, leadership opportunities and awareness of their rights.
Promoting appropriate adolescent health literacy, emotional wellbeing awareness and access to reliable information.
Building foundational capabilities relevant to future education, employability and economic participation without promoting inappropriate child labour.
Seeking to reduce barriers that limit girls’ access to learning and development opportunities.
Mobilising educational institutions, development partners, businesses and community organisations to support girls’ advancement.
Girls’ empowerment should not depend entirely on a single event, workshop or mentoring session.
GIRLS FORWARD seeks to strengthen access to opportunities and support systems that can continue to benefit girls as they progress through adolescence.
Our sustainability approach includes:
Developing structured opportunities for continued learning, mentorship and peer engagement.
Supporting appropriately qualified local facilitators and teachers to continue relevant activities.
Establishing safe and sustainable relationships with suitably vetted professionals and institutions.
Developing age-appropriate educational materials that can be used across participating schools and communities.
Encouraging supportive environments that strengthen girls’ educational participation and wellbeing.
Creating appropriate links between GIRLS FORWARD, educational opportunities and other C-PAID initiatives, including WIDE for eligible adult participants.
Using programme evidence to improve intervention quality, strengthen accountability and identify suitable opportunities for replication.
Investing in adolescent girls is an investment in education, capabilities, wellbeing and long-term social and economic progress.
However, meaningful investment requires practical interventions, appropriate safeguards, strong institutional relationships and clearly defined outcomes.
GIRLS FORWARD offers a platform for development agencies, philanthropic foundations, corporate organisations, educational institutions and professional networks seeking to expand opportunities for adolescent girls in Nigeria.
Our programme model allows partners to support distinct priorities or contribute to integrated projects addressing multiple dimensions of girls’ development.
Collaborate on educational enrichment, school engagement, mentoring and interventions addressing specific barriers to continued learning.
Support STEM workshops, digital literacy, coding exposure, innovation clubs, learning equipment and mentorship from women in technology.
Sponsor structured leadership academies, communication workshops, girls’ clubs and personal development activities.
Provide appropriately supervised mentoring opportunities, educational visits and exposure to diverse professional pathways.
Partner with qualified professionals on accurate, age-appropriate health literacy, menstrual health awareness and wellbeing education.
Contribute specialist expertise, referral capabilities and child protection support to strengthen programme safety and inclusion.
Collaborate on needs assessments, education-related research, learning outcome measurement and programme evaluation.
Work with C-PAID to develop accessible programmes for girls in rural, peri-urban and underserved communities.
GIRLS FORWARD has a clearly defined population, a distinct developmental purpose and a modular programme structure that can accommodate different funding priorities.
It seeks to connect girls’ education, future readiness, wellbeing and personal agency within a coherent framework rather than treating them as unrelated activities.
Our intended delivery approach emphasises community participation, measurable outcomes, safeguarding and responsible partnerships.
We welcome discussions on funding, technical expertise, programme implementation, research and other forms of collaboration aligned with our objectives.
A girl who discovers a talent for science deserves the opportunity to explore it. A girl who finds her voice deserves to be heard. A girl who wants to continue her education deserves meaningful support to pursue that ambition.
GIRLS FORWARD seeks to create opportunities through which girls can learn, build confidence, access positive mentoring relationships and develop capabilities that support their futures.
Contributions may support educational resources, STEM activities, mentoring, learning clubs, leadership development and inclusive programme delivery.
Whether you are an individual, institution, business or development partner, you can contribute to expanding opportunities for adolescent girls.
GIRLS FORWARD is C-PAID’s adolescent girls’ empowerment programme, focused on education, STEM and digital learning, mentorship, leadership development, health literacy, personal agency and future readiness.
The programme’s proposed primary age range is 10 to 19 years. Individual activities will be adapted to participants’ developmental stages, with additional safeguards for those under 18.
No. GIRLS FORWARD is intended for adolescent girls from different backgrounds. However, particular projects may prioritise girls experiencing barriers to education, skills development or other opportunities, depending on the project’s objectives and funding.
CHILDFIRST provides inclusive development opportunities for boys and girls, covering learning, STEM, creativity, leadership and wellbeing. GIRLS FORWARD specifically addresses the experiences, needs and aspirations of adolescent girls during their transition towards adulthood.
Yes. GIRLS FORWARD STEM is designed to introduce girls to practical science, digital literacy, coding, technology and innovation through age-appropriate activities.
Specific funded interventions may include educational reintegration support or referrals through appropriate educational and child protection partners. Availability will depend on the objectives, geographic scope and capacity of individual projects.
Scholarships or direct educational assistance are not guaranteed. Such support may be introduced within specific funded projects, subject to transparent selection criteria and available resources.
Structured mentorship is a proposed component of the programme. Mentorship arrangements will require appropriate screening, supervision, safeguarding and clearly defined roles.
Yes. GIRLS FORWARD WELL includes age-appropriate health and wellbeing education, delivered with suitable expertise and safeguards. It is not a substitute for professional medical care.
Yes. Schools and educational institutions may explore collaboration on learning activities, girls’ clubs, leadership development, STEM programmes, mentorship and related initiatives.
Information about eligibility, registration and programme locations will be published when specific activities are open. Parents and guardians may contact C-PAID for updates.
Yes. Partners may explore sponsorship of education, STEM, mentoring, leadership, health education or community-based interventions according to agreed objectives and implementation requirements.
The aspirations of adolescent girls deserve to be taken seriously.
Through learning, mentorship, leadership development, wellbeing education and purposeful partnerships, GIRLS FORWARD seeks to help girls develop the confidence and capabilities to pursue meaningful futures.
We believe that when girls are encouraged to discover their strengths and supported to make informed choices, they gain opportunities to shape their lives and contribute positively to their communities.
Together, we can turn potential into possibilities and possibilities into progress.
