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Background

The year 2020 marked the 75th anniversary of the first published book about Pippi Longstocking. To commemorate this jubilee, The Astrid Lindgren Company and Save the Children launched the global campaign ‘Pippi of Today’, a collaboration to create awareness and raise money for girls on the move.

The first book about Pippi Longstocking was released in 1945, right after the end of World War II with millions of people on the move – many of them children. It’s against this backdrop that Astrid Lindgren created an extraordinary girl to overcome extraordinary circumstances. Today 77 years later, more people are forcibly displaced than ever and half of these are children. Girls are particularly vulnerable. But every girl on the move is strong and each of them deserves the chance to take charge of their own story. By joining forces with the strongest, most famous girl in the world they can be empowered to do it. This is why Pippi of Today was initiated.

Two years later campaign products have been launched, programmes are up and running and partners all over the world continue to contribute to support girls on the move.

By the end of 2022, more than 60 partners have been part of raising around 2 Million euros in support of girls on the move.

How do we use the funds raised?

All funds raised through the campaign are and will be directed towards different Save the Children programmes with the aim to support girls on the move. The programmes are carried out in different contexts, both in countries of origin, in countries where girls on the move are in transit, and countries of destination where girls on the move plan to settle.

Although the Covid-19 situation has delayed the start of the programmes; there are examples of how the Pippi of Today campaign has or will make a difference for girls on the move.

Supporting active participation in refugee camps

In the Jordan refugee camps Za’atari and Azraq, 1332 girls, age 0-6 years, have received access to psychosocial support and participation in structured playing and learning activities. The project is ensuring girls’ active participation in their families and respective communities by diminishing discrimination at home or within the refugee camp communities; improving girls’ confidence and wellbeing. It is also supporting girls’ education, which is especially essential for girls on the move and aims at creating a culture of respect between girls and boys among all levels of society.

Increasing the skills, resilience and life chances for girls in Kigoma, Tanzania

In Tanzania, the Pippi of Today funds are supporting a child protection programme in three refugee camps and host communities in the Kigoma region. The programme aims at reaching around 50.000 girls, age 0-17, with improved access to child protection and sexual and reproductive health rights services. The services will increase the skills, resilience and life chances for girls. The programme will run until 2022.

Ensuring that girls can go to school

In Ukraine, Save the Children is running a programme for internally displaced children with disabilities to gain better access to education. Within the programme, and thanks to the Pippi of Today funds, it will also include tending to the specific needs of girls by providing hygiene kits. Supporting girls with hygiene items will increase their self-confidence, reduce psychosocial stress and reduce the number of cases of drop-outs from schools. Around 100 households will be reached with this service. 

Safety in temporary situations

Bosnia and Herzegovina is one of the key transit countries on the Balkans migration route to Europe. The overall objective of the programme supported there is to ensure urgent child protection support and protection for girls on the move in two temporary reception centers, and ensure girls are included in the Covid-19 response actions carried out. The aim is to reach 900 girls with tailor-made protection services and psychosocial support activities.

Superchicas in Spain

In Spain, ”Superchicas” engaged young girls in various activities to increase psychosocial development and wellbeing, to increase personal and collective self-esteem and to provide tools for the prevention and resolution of conflicts. Here are a few of the activities:

• Psychosocial development activites workshops including

• T-shirt screen printing, recycling and ecology and home economics

• Yoga and meditation, reading, writing, sports activities, going to museums and much more

New friendships in safe environments

In the Netherlands, the Pippi of Today funds are supporting the Team Up programme where children aged from 6 to 18 are offered a range of structured sports, play and physical activities. These activities support children in dealing with their complicated feelings. During TeamUp activities, children can meet children of the same age and build new friendships within a safe environment. They learn how to play together, trust each other and connect with one another.

In Sweden, Save the Children will support girls in migration to have access to an active leisure time. The project will focus on strengthening their autonomy, broadening their perspectives and thoughts by showing possible ways of having a meaningful leisure time on their own terms.