Coptic Orphans was invited to speak at the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women, an annual gathering held in honor of International Women’s Day. This year’s theme focused on advancing access to justice for women and girls.
Elaria Essak, our Senior Government Relations Officer, addressed global delegates and organizations like WHO, FAO, and IOM, sharing how Coptic Orphans empowers girls and women to pursue justice from an early age despite the challenges they face.
Chair, Excellencies, and distinguished delegates:
On behalf of Coptic Orphans, allow me to illustrate the importance of the grassroots efforts that make possible the high-level institutional policies we have discussed today and throughout this forum.
Imagine a girl growing up in Sharona, a small, rural village along the Nile in Egypt. The nearest school is across the river, accessible only by boat. Unable to reach this school, she drops out at 11 years old, like most girls in her village.
She has no literacy skills. As the years pass, her dependence on others grows, and her choices narrow. In her town, most girls are married by 18. Her mother’s experience echoes this path – she was married at 14, a mother at 15, and widowed by 26. It is this girl’s inevitable future.
This girl will never hold a job or gain financial independence. In a few years, when she meets her fate, her husband will control her finances. She does not know her rights, how to protect herself, or where to turn if she experiences harm. If she is ever a victim of crime, she will not contact the police or set foot in a courtroom. She will move on quietly and avoid looking neighbors in the eye to escape the shame of being a victim.
Now imagine that same girl encountering Coptic Orphans, an NGO helping vulnerable children achieve their potential through education and one of the world’s largest nonprofits operating in Egypt. Because of one intervention, this girl’s trajectory changes. She is no longer thinking about her fate as a teenage wife and homemaker. Rather, she is making plans to study engineering and start a water purification project for her village. She finishes high school and earns her engineering degree. She learns not only reading and math, but also confidence, leadership, and how to recognize abuse and seek help through judicial institutions.
Her mother is also involved, gaining independence and financial literacy. What began as support for the girl becomes a two-generation intervention for a family – and eventually – a community. Girls from her village start sharing her story and following in her footsteps.
This girl from Sharona is real. Her story is real – I had the pleasure of meeting her last year. She is just one of the tens of thousands of girls for whom Coptic Orphans has broken the cycle of injustice and poverty. When girls are surrounded by support – through education, mentorship, family engagement, and community-based protection – they can exercise their rights, make informed decisions, access justice, participate in society, and dare to be at the forefront of decision-making processes.
Through this support system, Coptic Orphans equips girls to be leaders and peacebuilders. Empowered girls and women transform the systems around them. For example, this year, through one of our initiatives, the Valuable Girl Project, girls from various religious backgrounds improved their literacy rates by a staggering 90%. Additionally, girls and young women initiated community projects benefiting nearly 800,000 Egyptians. By the end of this year, Coptic Orphans staff and volunteers will have conducted over half a million home visits to support our program participants and their families. This tremendous work lies not with governments or researchers, but with grassroots operations that walk side by side with the girl and ensure her empowerment into womanhood.
Accordingly, Coptic Orphans recommends that the United Nations invest in grassroots organizations to: 1) build programs to promote women’s empowerment, autonomy, and gender parity from early stages of life; 2) conduct workshops for girls and women to learn their rights and how to prevent violence; 3) promote girls’ leadership in justice programs and community-based projects; and 4) build forums where grassroots organizations have the same voice as multilateral conglomerates.
My name is Elaria, and as a senior staff member at Coptic Orphans, I have had the pleasure of experiencing the organization’s mission firsthand. I have witnessed that women’s full and effective participation in public life and their access to justice systems requires more than formal guarantees. It requires interventions that begin with girls, during their first years of life.
Grassroots organizations like Coptic Orphans are the most effective institutions to enact these interventions daily. Indeed, access to justice begins before women and girls step into a courtroom.
Thank you, and I welcome you to speak with me to learn more about Coptic Orphans and women’s empowerment in Egypt.