Image copyright Unicef Image caption Young girls find many domestic tasks imposed on them as they grow up, Unicef says 
 
 Girls spend 40% more time performing unpaid household chores than boys, according to a new report from the UN children's agency. 
 
 Unicef said the difference in time spent working amounted to 160 million extra hours a day worldwide. 
 
 Two out of three girls cook and clean in the home, and almost half collect water or firewood. 
 
 They also perform more "less visible" domestic work like childcare or looking after the elderly, the report says. 
 
 It also found that the extra workload increased with time: between ages five and nine, girls spend 30% more time on chores - by 14, it rises to 50%. 
 
 African girls tell housekeeping tales 
 
 Tasks such as gathering water or firewood can also put young girls at increased risk of sexual violence, the report says. 
 
 In Somalia, girls between 10 and 14 years old spend 26 hours a week on household chores - the most of any country. Burkina Faso and Yemen also have some of the largest labour gaps between boys and girls. 
 
 "Girls sacrifice important opportunities to learn, grow and just enjoy their childhood," Unicef's Anju Malhotra said. 
 
 "This unequal distribution of labour among children also perpetuates gender stereotypes and the double burden on women and girls across generations." 
 
 The report, which also includes data on violence, child marriage, female genital mutilation and education, is being released to coincide with the UN's international day of the girl child on 11 October. ||||| Press release 
 
 Girls spend 160 million more hours than boys doing household chores everyday – UNICEF 
 
 © UNICEF/UNI133724/Holt A girl helps prepare her family’s evening meal, outside their makeshift home in the Majo camp for displaced people in Mogadishu, Somalia. 
 
 NEW YORK, 7 October, 2016 – Girls between 5 and 14 years old spend 40 per cent more time, or 160 million more hours a day, on unpaid household chores and collecting water and firewood compared to boys their age, according to a report released by UNICEF ahead of International Day of the Girl on 11 October. 
 
 Harnessing the Power of Data for Girls: Taking stock and looking ahead to 2030 includes the first global estimates on the time girls spend doing household chores such as cooking, cleaning, caring for family members and collecting water and firewood. 
 
 The data show that the disproportionate burden of domestic work begins early, with girls between 5 and 9 years old spending 30 per cent more time, or 40 million more hours a day, on household chores than boys their age. The disparities grow as girls get older, with 10 to 14 year olds spending 50 per cent more time, or 120 million more hours each day. 
 
 “The overburden of unpaid household work begins in early childhood and intensifies as girls reach adolescence,” said UNICEF’s Principal Gender Advisor Anju Malhotra. “As a result, girls sacrifice important opportunities to learn, grow, and just enjoy their childhood. This unequal distribution of labour among children also perpetuates gender stereotypes and the double-burden on women and girls across generations.” 
 
 The report notes that girls’ work is less visible and often undervalued. Too often adult responsibilities such as caring for family members, including other children, are imposed on girls. Time spent on chores limits a girl’s time to play, socialize with friends, study and be a child. In some countries, collecting firewood and water puts girls at risk of sexual violence. 
 
 The report also found that: 
 
 Girls between 10 and 14 years old in South Asia and the Middle East and North Africa spend nearly double the amount of time on household chores compared to boys. 
 
 The countries where girls between 10 and 14 years old bear the most disproportionate burden of household chores compared to boys are: Burkina Faso, Yemen and Somalia. 
 
 10 to 14 year-old girls in Somalia spend the most amount of time on household chores in total: 26 hours every week. 
 
 “Quantifying the challenges girls face is the first critical step towards meeting the Sustainable Development Goal on gender equality and breaking down barriers that confront the world’s 1.1 billion girls,” said UNICEF Chief of Data and Analytics Attila Hancioglu. 
 
 Harnessing the Power of Data for Girls: Taking stock and looking ahead to 2030 notes that In addition to household chores, the report presents data on girl-related issues addressed by the SDGs including violence, child marriage, female genital mutilation and education. Achieving the SDGs that address these issues and empowering girls with the knowledge, skills and resources they need to reach their full potential, is not only good for girls, but can drive economic growth, promote peace and reduce poverty 
 
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 Download broadcast quality multimedia materials here: http://weshare.unicef.org/Package/2AMZIFM2ONZ 
 
 About UNICEF 
 
 UNICEF promotes the rights and wellbeing of every child, in everything we do. Together with our partners, we work in 190 countries and territories to translate that commitment into practical action, focusing special effort on reaching the most vulnerable and excluded children, to the benefit of all children, everywhere. 
 
 For more information about UNICEF and its work for children visit www.unicef.org 
 
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 For more information, contact 
 
 Melanie Sharpe, UNICEF New York, +1 917-251-7670, msharpe@unicef.org
– In every corner of the world girls do more housework than boys, and this gender gap starts young and only widens with age. So reports UNICEF in a global analysis that finds girls on average spend 40% more time on household chores than do boys, and that this amounts to 160 million more hours of work every day. The gender divide starts by age 5, with girls between the ages of 5 and 9 devoting 30% more time on this unpaid work than boys, and widens to 50% more time for girls between the ages of 10 and 14. The BBC reports that the findings, which include data on violence, child marriage, education, and female genital mutilation, is being formally released on Oct. 11, the UN's international day of the girl. Chores range from cooking and cleaning the house to taking care of family members young and old and collecting water and firewood, reports New York magazine. "As a result, girls sacrifice important opportunities to learn, grow, and just enjoy their childhood," says UNICEF’s principal gender adviser, Anju Malhotra. She adds that the unequal distribution of unpaid labor perpetuates gender stereotypes and in some countries is shown to increase girls' risk of sexual violence. The countries with the highest gender gap are Burkina Faso, Yemen, and Somalia, and girls in Somalia average 26 hours a week on chores, more than any other children anywhere. (Women do the bulk of housework in the US, regardless of how many hours they work outside the home.)