“Her Skill, Her Power – Pathway to a Brighter Future Project” Helps Disadvantaged Girls in Mainland China Pursue Their Dreams and Carve out a Niche

Amid the combined effects of the pandemic and economic downturn, youth unemployment in Mainland China remains alarmingly high. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, in June 2023, the unemployment rate for young people aged 16 to 24 reached a record high of 21.3%. Although this figure has slightly decreased recently, it has hovered between 16% and 18% since July last year, signalling unprecedented challenges in the mainland’s youth employment market.

Even more concerning is the disadvantage faced by women in the workplace. Forbes recently cited a report from China’s leading career development platform Zhaopin for 2022 and 2023, revealing that women earn only about 80% of men’s salaries for the same roles. As many as 90% of working women in the Mainland reported experiencing workplace injustice—nearly double the rate of their male counterparts. Gender inequality remains a significant barrier to women’s career progression. For many girls with limited educational attainment, from second- and third-tier cities or rural areas, securing stable employment is even more challenging. Despite striving to find their value amid uncertainty, they often lack competitiveness due to limited skills, resources, and confidence, making economic independence difficult to achieve.

Although uncertain about their futures, many girls refuse to accept their circumstances and are determined to build a better life through their own efforts. To empower them, Plan International, with the support of our Corporate and Foundation Partnerships, launched the “Her Skill, Her Power” project (the “Project”) in Chengdu from February 2023 to January 2024. The Project provides vocational training to disadvantaged young girls in Chengdu, helping them access employment opportunities. Given the strong demand in the beauty industry, combined with the sector’s ability to enable young women to acquire practical skills within a short period while offering numerous job prospects, the Project delivers vocational training in beauty-related skills to 120 disadvantaged young women aged 16 to 29. Comprehensive support—including career networking, career planning, and guidance on job-seeking regulations—is also provided to enhance their professional skills, overcome employment barriers, and facilitate smooth job placement, empowering the girls to pursue sustainable development along their chosen paths and live life to the fullest.

Comprehensive Support for Young Girls to Achieve Self-Realisation

Ruiqiu (pseudonym), one of the Project’s participants, is from Liangshan in southwestern Sichuan Province. After finishing high school, she worked temporarily as a kindergarten teacher and waitress. As Liangshan is a relatively underdeveloped region, Ruiqiu was poorly paid and uncertain about her future. Deep down, she yearned for financial independence and a job that would allow her to realise her self-worth and offer promising prospects. With her mother’s support, she moved to Chengdu to seek better opportunities.

However, lacking professional skills, Ruiqiu faced obstacles in the fiercely competitive job market. What frustrated her further was the prevailing gender bias that men generally outperform women in certain roles. At a time when she felt confused and exhausted, Ruiqiu joined the Her Skill, Her Power Project and got the chance to acquire beauty skills and open a new chapter in her life.

“Besides teaching me beauty skills, the Project helped me recognise gender inequality at work. It also made me realise the importance of using the law to protect my rights, which will be invaluable in my future career,” Ruiqiu shared. Moreover, the gender equality courses enlightened her further, showing that workplace performance depends on individual ability rather than gender; even in traditionally ‘male’ fields, women can excel.

Besides professional makeup training, Ruiqiu and her peers gained practical knowledge about workplace values, gender equality, and labour laws.

Helping Girls Overcome Challenges and Regain Confidence

Another participant, Manni (pseudonym), once felt utterly lost about her career path. Like Ruiqiu, she had limited education and no professional skills, facing numerous setbacks when job hunting. Negative work experiences had eroded her confidence, making her fearful of communication and reluctant to build relationships, which pushed her towards social isolation.

Despite feeling confused and desperate, Manni sought a fresh start and decided to learn a new skill. Influenced by friends, she developed an interest in the beauty industry and joined the Her Skill, Her Power Project to gain professional training, preparing herself for a career in the sector and embracing new possibilities.

Through the Project, Manni not only found a career she loves but also learned to express her views in class. She gradually became more confident, cheerful, and hopeful about her future. “This programme helped me establish clear career values and gave me direction in choosing a career. I feel fortunate to be part of it, and the vocational training scholarship strengthened my determination to master beauty skills!” Manni said enthusiastically.

In addition to vocational training, the Project offers activities such as group discussions and speech sharing to improve participants’ communication skills and self-confidence. In a relaxed and joyful atmosphere, the training helped Manni overcome her fear of interaction, becoming more active in sharing experiences and ideas with classmates and tutors, thus regaining her confidence.

Empowering Disadvantaged Girls to Unleash Their Potential

Plan International’s Her Skill, Her Power Project provided vocational training and sustainable career development skills to 120 young girls. All participants completed the whole Project and obtained qualification certificates. Within six months of training, nearly all trainees (119 girls) secured employment, achieving an impressive employment rate of 99%. We are proud that the Project not only supports disadvantaged girls in achieving economic independence but also helps them build self-confidence and self-worth, creating opportunities to transform their lives.

Disadvantaged young girls face numerous challenges in China’s rapidly evolving labour market, but Plan International firmly believes every girl has unlimited potential. By providing the right opportunities and support, these girls can overcome obstacles, fulfill their dreams, and create a brighter future.