The United Nations declared October 11, 2012, the
first Day of the Girl to focus attention on girls' empowerment and the
fulfillment of their human rights. This year's observation targets their education.
Some
decades ago, aged eight or nine, I was given the choice of either doing well at
school or being a housemaid. My mom took me out of school for three days to
show me how it would compare. I was back at school after the second.
Although
my dreams and ambitions of higher education were quashed by the Lebanon civil
war, I have since been a strong supporter of education in general, but
especially girls’ education. Having worked since age 12, I am also a firm
believer in the woman’s role in the workplace and global economy.
Girls
face discrimination and violence every day across the world. The International
Day of the Girl Child – designated on December 19, 2011 in UN General Assembly
Resolution 66/170 -- focuses attention on the need to address the challenges
girls face and to promote girls’ empowerment and the fulfillment of their human
rights.
The fulfillment
of girls’ right to education is first and foremost an obligation and moral
imperative.
There is also
overwhelming evidence that girls’ education, especially at the secondary level,
is a powerful transformative force for societies and girls themselves. It is
the one consistent positive determinant of practically every desired
development outcome, from reductions in mortality and fertility, to poverty
reduction and equitable growth, to social norm change and democratization.
While there has been significant progress in improving girls’ access to education over the last two decades, many girls -- particularly the most marginalized -- continue to be deprived of this basic right, according to the United Nations.
Girls in
many countries are still unable to attend school and complete their education
due to safety-related, financial, institutional and cultural barriers. Even when
girls are in school, perceived low returns from the poor quality of education,
low aspirations, or household chores and other responsibilities keep them from
attending school or from achieving adequate learning outcomes. The
transformative potential for girls and societies promised through girls’
education is yet to be realized.
Recognizing
the need for fresh and creative perspectives to propel girls’ education, the
2013 International Day of the Girl Child will address the importance of new
technology as well as innovation in partnerships, policies, resource
utilization, community mobilization, and most of all, the engagement of young
people themselves.
Examples
of possible steps include:
- Improved public and private means of transportation for girls to get to school -- from roads, buses, mopeds, bicycles to boats and canoes;
- Collaboration between school systems and the banking industry to facilitate secure and convenient pay delivery to female teachers and scholarship delivery to girls;
- Provision of science and technology courses targeted at girls in schools, universities and vocational education programs;
- Corporate mentorship programs to help girls acquire critical work and leadership skills and facilitate their transition from school to work;
- Revisions of school curricula to integrate positive messages on gender norms related to violence, child marriage, sexual and reproductive health, and male and female family roles;
- Deploying mobile technology for teaching and learning to reach girls, especially in remote areas.
Raise
your hand
To mark
International Day of the Girl Child today, a UK charity calls on nations to
urgently prioritize quality education for girls as an essential factor in tackling
crippling poverty.
 |
| Malala Yousafzai and actress Frida Pinto raise their hands |
Plan UK, a global children’s charity founded 75 years ago, has a petition running to call on the United Nations to make girls’ education a priority in its new development agenda. The “Raise Your Hand” petition has reached over one million hands raised and is now aiming for four million.
Plan works
with the world’s poorest children so they can move themselves from a life of
poverty to a future with opportunity.
Globally,
it is estimated 65 million girls are out of school, with one in five adolescent
girls around denied an education by the daily realities of poverty,
discrimination and violence. Disasters and emergencies can make these problems
worse.
Supporting
girls’ education is one of the single best investments a government can make to
help end poverty and give hope to girls, otherwise denied their rights and
aspirations, Plan says.
Plan UK is
celebrating the worldwide support shown for the petition on the first
anniversary of the shooting of Malala Yousafzai who has become a global
spokesperson on the subject since she was shot by the Taliban in October 2012
for going to school.
Malala is just one of the many people around the globe to have raised her hand for our Because I Am A Girl campaign. The petition has now reached 1.5 million signatures and will be presented to the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
Plan’s
Because I am a Girl campaign aims to support four million girls to stay in
education and fulfill their potential.
Plan’s campaign will
be in London’s Trafalgar Square today from 10.30 a.m to unveil a giant “erasable”
billboard to remind the world that every girl has a right to go to school.
Plan will
also be “pinkifying” monuments around the world for the second year running on
International Day of the Girl. Monuments including the Empire State Building
will be glowing pink in support of girls’ education.
It
believes girls hold the power to help break the cycle of poverty. With
education, skills and the right support, girls can make choices over their own
future and be a huge part of creating lasting change. An educated girl is...
- less likely to marry and to have children whilst she is still a child.
- more likely to be literate, healthy and survive into adulthood, as are her children.
- more likely to reinvest her income back into her family, community and country.
Child
marriage
Last
year’s Day focused on child marriage,
which is a fundamental human rights violation and impacts all aspects of a
girl’s life. Child marriage denies a girl of her childhood, disrupts her
education, limits her opportunities, increases her risk to be a victim of
violence and abuse and jeopardizes her health.
Girls with low levels of schooling
are more likely to be married early, and child marriage has been shown to
virtually end a girl’s education. Conversely, girls with secondary schooling
are up to six times less likely to marry as children, making education one of
the best strategies for protecting girls and combating child marriage.
Preventing child marriage will
protect girls’ rights and help reduce their risks of violence, early pregnancy,
HIV infection, and maternal death and disability, including obstetric fistula.
When girls are able to stay in school and avoid being married early, they can
build a foundation for a better life for themselves and their families and
participate in the progress of their nations.
Related
posts:
Shame, as we fail the children of
Syria -- August 23, 2013
March 8: Women's rights
non-negotiable -- March
8, 2013
Malala: Education is the
only solution -- July
13, 2013
The Power of We… for education -- Oct 15, 2012
How many more Child Brides must die? -- June 11, 2012
March
8: Education can win the future --
March 06, 2012
