The theatre performance titled “Girl child burden” was demonstrated within the “Global Program on Prevention of a Boy Child Preference and Promotion of the Value of a Girl Child” implemented by UNFPA with the financial support of EU. The director and author of the performance is the Honored Art Worker, director of the “Pantomime” theater Bakhtiyar Khanizada. The premiere of the performance is the closing event of the series of events devoted to the International Girl Child Day.
The performance is about the prejudiced position towards women in the society and family, male-domination in families, patriarchal rules leading to gender discrimination and negative stereotypes that undermine women's role in society.
Farid Babayev, Assistant Representative of UNFPA, in his opening speech, highlighted the negative impact of the skewed sex ratio among children in the society. He provided information about the projects implemented by UNFPA in this field.
Later, Idris Isayev, the deputy minister for Labour and Social Protection of the Population spoke about the impact of the skewed sex ratio at birth on demographic dynamics and programs implemented by the government in combatting this problem.
The performance is an integral part of series of events dedicated to the International Girl Child Day. This Day, declared by the UN in 2012, is celebrated every year on 11th of October. Within its two projects funded by the Kingdom of the Netherlands and EU accordingly, UNFPA has held series of events in observance of this Day for promoting the value of a girl child. Fathers and girls festival, social experiment, photo exhibition and article contest among media
representatives, as well as video shooting were the part of the events. The Ministry of Labour and Social Protection of the Population, the Ministry of Youth and Sport, the State Committee for Family, Women and Children Affairs of Azerbaijan Republic have been closely involved in both projects as key government partners to ensure successful implementation.
Prevention of the skewed sex ratio at birth in Azerbaijan has been one of the key strategic priorities of UNFPA for several years. It should be noted with regret that if the sex ratio continues to be 116/100, every year 12-15,000 or more boy children will be born. The similar experience of other countries with the same problem shows that extreme increase of number of men, as well as widespread of violence cases in the country is closely related to a number of negative situations, as a further aggravation of delinquency, bride kidnapping, early marriages, human trafficking, etc.
