2005: gender equity

Education is expensive. Often it is poor quality, or is simply unavailable. Completing primary education is the most that can be hoped for, but the benefits gained may well not justify the huge investment made.

To get a child educated requires massive sacrifices, and for a girl the chances of her family making such sacrifices are very slim indeed.

Educating girls and women is an important step in overcoming poverty. Women's education leads directly to better family health, economic growth and lower rates of child mortality and malnutrition. It is also key in the fight against the spread of HIV & AIDS. Yet 65 million girls are being denied their right to education

In 2000 world leaders agreed to get as many girls as boys into primary and secondary classrooms by 2005. Governments also promised to ensure that by 2015, all girls and boys complete primary education. On current trends, these targets will be missed by at least 15-20 years.

At ActionAid we are committed to keeping the pressure on governments and donors to ensure they reach their targets.

No excuses
Policy actions taken by governments and organisations working in education have an enormous influence over the size of the gender gap in education. It is important not to use tradition as an excuse for gender inequality in education, as cultural resistance to girls' education often evaporates where schooling is genuinely accessible, of a reasonable quality, and gender-sensitive: 

• different states in India, which face broadly similar economic, cultural and social conditions, have achieved very different outcomes on girls' education, with total gender parity in Kerala and a 50% gap in Uttar Pradesh 
• Bangladesh, though poorer than Pakistan and India, has surpassed both countries in girls' education since introducing a nationwide programme of targeted subsidies to girls attending secondary school

photo : ©ActionAid