• Around the world, digital tools are helping girls access health information, continue their education, and build skills for the future.
• In the Philippines, girls are using a digital app that Plan International co-built to learn about menstrual health and challenge harmful myths.
• In Cameroon, e-learning programs supported by Plan International are helping girls continue their education when conflict disrupts school.
• Through Girls Belong Here and the Eureka Fellowship, youth advocates are bringing their experiences into conversations about the issues affecting girls.

What happens when a girl can’t get the health information she needs? What happens when she can’t get to school?

Around the world, millions of girls face barriers that make it harder to learn, stay healthy, and reach their potential. For some, a medical clinic is too far away. For others, conflict or poverty interrupts their education. Increasingly, access to health care and education also depends on something many of us take for granted: a connection to the digital world.

Digital tools can’t solve every challenge. But they can help bridge gaps that might otherwise keep girls from the information, services, and opportunities they need.

Through Girls Belong Here and the Eureka Fellowship, we’ve had opportunities to bring our experiences into conversations with leaders and decision makers. Although our stories are different, we’ve both seen how access – or the lack of it – can shape a person’s future.

For one of us, that realization came through health care. For the other, it came through education. Together, those experiences have shown us why digital access matters.

Jenna’s story

My story starts in a hospital waiting room.

I was 11 years old when I was diagnosed with juvenile arthritis. A few years later, I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia. Throughout my teens, I also navigated anorexia, depression, and anxiety. For the most part, I received excellent health care in Nova Scotia, but there were moments that stayed with me.

Long waits.

Symptoms that weren’t always taken seriously.

Questions that took time to answer.

The moments that made the biggest difference weren’t always treatments or prescriptions. They were the moments when someone listened. When someone believed me.

As I got older, I started thinking about girls who face barriers far greater than my own. Around the world, many girls don’t have access to accurate health information, nearby clinics, or trusted sources of support. In some communities, simply understanding what’s happening in your own body can be difficult.

That’s why digital tools can be so powerful. When I was managing multiple health conditions, apps helped me track appointments, medications, and symptoms. Technology didn’t solve everything, but it made navigating health care easier.

For girls in other parts of the world, digital tools can provide something even more fundamental: information.

When a smartphone becomes a health resource

In the Philippines, Catherine remembers what happened when she got her first period.

A stain on her skirt left her confused and embarrassed. When she asked questions, the answers came quietly: Stay away from certain foods, don’t do certain activities, don’t talk about it too much. Nobody explained why.

“These were all things I was told growing up,” Catherine says. “But I later learned through a period-tracking app that most of it wasn’t true.”

That app was Oky, a period-tracking and menstrual health app developed by Plan International and partners. Through Oky, girls can learn about menstrual health, track their cycles, and access reliable information about their bodies.

Whether it’s tracking symptoms, learning about menstrual health, or finding trustworthy information online, digital access can help girls better understand and care for their health.

Today, like Catherine, I bring my experiences into conversations about health-care policy and youth engagement. Because where you live, what you earn, or whether someone chooses to listen shouldn’t determine your ability to access care.

Norah’s story

My understanding of education didn’t begin in a classroom. It began with stories from Lebanon.

I didn’t grow up there myself, but through family and friends who live there, I’ve seen what happens when conflict and instability disrupt everyday life. Schools close. Classes are cancelled. Students don’t know when – or if – they’ll be able to continue learning.

It was one of the first times I realized how fragile access to education can be.

Later, while volunteering in learning centres and community spaces for refugees in Sri Lanka and Montreal, I saw similar challenges up close. Refugees were falling behind because they lacked access to a classroom, a laptop, or an internet connection. And sometimes it was simply not having the digital skills needed to participate fully in learning.

Those experiences stayed with me when I became a youth delegate to the United Nations.

The more I listened, the more I came back to one question:

How can we talk about opportunity when so many young people don’t have access to the tools they need to learn, connect, and participate?

That question inspired me to create SYNC, a youth-led initiative that provides digital and AI literacy training to young people in communities where those opportunities don’t always exist.

Today, SYNC has reached approximately 120 elementary students, many in refugee communities and underserved schools across the Middle East.

I’ve seen how quickly confidence grows when students gain access to technology and the skills to use it.

A classroom without walls

In Amchide, Cameroon, conflict and insecurity has forced many schools to close, putting girls like Esther at risk of falling behind.

Then, through an e-learning program supported by Plan International and local partners, Esther was able to continue her education remotely while staying connected to other girls in her community.

“E-learning has improved my academic performance,” Esther says. “I understand my lessons better, especially in science.”

When I think about students I’ve met through SYNC and girls like Esther, I’m reminded that digital access isn’t just about technology – it’s about opportunity.

It’s about making sure a girl can keep learning when circumstances beyond her control threaten to force her out of school.

It’s about helping young people build the skills they’ll need to shape their own futures.

More than technology

Digital tools aren’t a magic solution. A health app can’t replace a doctor. An online lesson can’t solve every barrier to education. But technology can help bridge gaps that might otherwise keep girls disconnected from important services, information, and opportunities.

That’s what connects Catherine’s story in the Philippines to Esther’s story in Cameroon. One used a digital tool to better understand her health; the other used one to continue her education. Different challenges, different countries, but the same idea: When girls have access to information, skills, and technology, new possibilities open up.

Through Girls Belong Here, we’ve learned that girls don’t just need access to technology. They need access to the decisions that shape their lives. When girls have information, opportunities, and a voice, they become powerful advocates for change.

Whether they’re tracking their health, continuing their education, or speaking up in rooms where decisions are made, they’re helping build a future where fewer girls are left behind.

And digital access is one way to help unlock that potential.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. Why does digital access matter for girls?

Today, access to education and health care isn’t just about having a classroom or a health clinic nearby. It’s also about being able to get online, find reliable information, stay connected to learning, and build the skills needed for the future. When girls don’t have access to technology or the chance to learn how to use it, they’re often left out of opportunities that others take for granted.

2. What is Girls Belong Here?

Girls Belong Here is Plan International Canada’s youth leadership program. It gives young people the chance to share their experiences, speak with decision -makers, and help shape conversations about the issues that affect their lives.

3. How is Plan helping girls build digital skills?

Plan International programs help girls access technology, learn digital skills, and build confidence using online tools. From staying connected to school to exploring future career paths, these skills can open doors and help girls take part in a world that is increasingly digital.

4. How can I help?

Your support can help more girls access the tools, training, and information they need to learn, lead, and make informed decisions about their futures. Together, we can help ensure girls aren’t just part of the conversation – they’re also helping shape it. Want to donate? Support training for Canadian youth leaders or give Gifts of Hope that provide digital literacy training to women and girls today.