The Girls First Institute is a leadership programme that equips women to support girls in their communities through education, health rights, and safe spaces to be heard.
The skill-building programmes of the Girls First Institute offer grassroots leaders hands-on support. The work is tailored for East Africa, Latin America, and South Asia where girls face high rates of pregnancy, school drop-out, domestic and sexual violence, and gender oppression. Our open-source resources and have been downloaded and used in over 86 countries.
233
Organisations registered in GFI
33
countries home to GFI-registered organisations
The Girls First Institute Reach
El Salvador
Guatemala
Honduras
6
countries with in-depth training
India
Kenya
Uganda
50,000+
girls reached through trainings & use of toolkits
400+
leaders trained annually
Grassroots leaders are already trusted in their communities — and uniquely positioned to reach girls most at risk. They're often the first to respond to crisis and yet the last to receive resources.
The Girls First Institute exists to change that: investing in the women leading frontline organisations so they can keep advancing education, safety, health, and leadership.
Driving Better Outcomes for Girls
The Girls First Institute equips leaders with expertise across three core areas that drive better outcomes for girls. Those who complete the program earn a credential that signals proven skills and measurable program growth — helping them attract funding from our network of partners who are ready to invest in their work.
Girl-centred mentoring
Supports organisations to design programmes grounded in girls’ lived realities, voices, and needs, to maximize impact
Feminist mentoring for girls
Builds mentoring approaches that create safe spaces where girls can access information, develop confidence, and strengthen their leadership and decision-making
Sexual & reproductive health & rights
Equips organisations to address the real challenges girls face around relationships, safety, menstruation, and bodily autonomy through age-appropriate and girl-centred programming
“The mentors now feel more equipped to address gender-related challenges the girls face and are better able to facilitate empowering discussions. Girls have become more confident in advocating for their rights.”
Her Voice Matters, Kenya
Explore the Girls First Institute
Integrating The Girls First Institute + RISE
This year, we launched Naserian, a two-year pilot in 2026 in Narok County, Kenya, where rates of teenage pregnancy, school dropout, and female genital mutilation remain among the highest in the country.
Naserian brings together the Girls First Institute and RISE to connect learning in schools with support in communities. The program strengthens girls’ confidence, supports school re-enrollment, and builds lasting support for girls’ education among parents, caregivers, and teachers. Lessons from Naserian will help shape how this approach is scaled in the future.
Naserian will reach 2ooo adolescents in schools and 6500 out-of-school girls, building confidence skills and the power to shape their futures