It is also about ensuring that girls learn and feel safe while in school; complete all levels of education with the skills to effectively compete in the labor market; learn the socio-emotional and life skills necessary to navigate and adapt to a changing world; make decisions about their own lives; and contribute to their communities and the world. Better educated women tend to be healthier, participate more in the formal labor market, earn higher incomes, have fewer children, marry at a later age, and enable better health care and education for their children, should they choose to become mothers.
All these factors combined can help lift households, communities, and nations out of poverty. According to UNESCO estimates, million girls between the age of 6 and 17 are out of school and 15 million girls of primary-school ageβhalf of them in sub-Saharan Africaβ will never enter a classroom. Poverty remains the most important factor for determining whether a girl can access an education.
For example, in Nigeria , only 4 percent of poor young women in the North West zone can read, compared with 99 percent of rich young women in the South East. Studies consistently reinforce that girls who face multiple disadvantages β such as low family income, living in remote or underserved locations, disability or belonging to a minority ethno-linguistic group β are farthest behind in terms of access to and completion of education. Violence also negatively impacts access to education and a safe environment for learning.
Child marriage is also a critical challenge. Child brides are much more likely to drop out of school and complete fewer years of education than their peers who marry later.
This affects the education and health of their children, as well as their ability to earn a living. Every day, girls face barriers to education caused by poverty, cultural norms and practices, poor infrastructure, violence, and fragility.
