World Girl Index shows global improvements in girls' health

The inaugural World Girl Index, a collaborative study by Plan International Deutschland and Ruhr University Bochum, reveals significant improvements in the health of girls globally since 2000. The study analyzed health developments for 971 million girls aged five to 19 across 192 countries.

Key findings indicate that girl mortality rates have more than halved, dropping from approximately 1 in 800 in 2000 to 1 in 1,700 in 2023. Additionally, the probability of a girl having a child has decreased by one-third over the same period, moving from 1 in 31 in 2000 to 1 in 48 in 2023.

Data shows that girls in 178 of the 192 surveyed countries are living healthier lives than at the start of the millennium. Petra Berner, CEO of Plan International Deutschland, noted that early pregnancy and marriage pose significant health risks and often lead to girls dropping out of education. The index was created to address a lack of specific data regarding girls, as previous statistics often focused only on children or women.