The U. S. Embassy in Ouagadougou joined 1,200 other groups around the world on October 11, 2013 to commemorate the International Day of the Girl by organizing a film screening of “Girl Rising” for local high school and primary school students and teachers plus NGOs that promote girls education. The film was followed by a panel discussion led by three successful Burkinabé women, hallmarked by the testimony of a teacher who helped save her younger sister from forced marriage by paying for her to go back to school. In the film, the audience saw how many girls are still struggling to be able to go to school around the world, a current issue faced here in Burkina Faso. Two days before the film show, one of the major national newspapers published a story of a young girl in Burkina Faso who was refused to be forced by her parents to get married; she sought refuge at the Social Action offices. She is willing to continue her studies but up to now her family does not accept this and wants her to get married instead.
