The damaging effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have proven relentless—but young women and girls are feeling these effects most.
While children tend to have a lower infection rate and less severe symptoms, countless reports—like the one from nonprofit PLAN International—show the detrimental effects on children’s education and protective structures, while also putting young people (disproportionately girls) at increased risk for “psychological distress, … violence, abuse exploitation and neglect.”