Brighter Path: A Health, Education and Leadership Program for Ethnic Minority Girls in Vietnam

Vietnam's 53 ethnic minority (EM) groups live in rural areas with limited access to healthcare and education. EM people make up 15% of the population but account for 70% of the extreme poor. Less than 8% of EM girls complete high school. Child marriage rates among EM girls average 27%, with rates over 50% in some groups. EM girls are nearly 4 times likely to give birth compared to Kinh majority. Challenges of poverty, school dropout, adolescent marriage and pregnancy are interrelated and severe.