According to UN statistics women constitute over half of Madagascar's total population of approx. 20 million. However, the percentage of females which are educated in rural place are very low. UNICEF Denmark began to work with girls in Madagascar in 2009 with the intention to increase the number of girls in the upper grade levels, and ultimately transform the community and society's focus on girls.
The series of images is made for UNICEF Denmark and follow Sonia, 13 in her everyday life on the East coast of Madagascar. She lives in a small hut located on a dusty, tortuous roads close to the Indian Ocean. Madagascar is among the world's 15 poorest countries and 92% live in remote areas. Millions of families live for under1 US dollars a day and work as day labourers mainly in the rice fields and forests. Sonia come from a very poor family and received a scholarship from UNICEF Denmark to continue their study at her local school. The initiative from UNICEF Denmark is inline with the UN Development Goal gender equality; which namely is to eliminate gender disparity and make girls and women visible in the developing countries.
EAST COAST, MADAGASCAR
