Every girl deserves to go to school and get the education that is her right. Millions of girls around the world like Salma are missing out on an education, because, often their families can't afford to pay school expenses such as tuition fees, textbooks, uniforms or transportation.
Dropping out of school at a young age, girls are usually left to do housework and care for family members.
Without an education, girls are more likely to be forced into marriage and fall pregnant. They are more likely to face violence through their lives, and to get stuck in a cycle of poverty.
But with an education, all of this can change. With an education, girls are able to transform their own futures and build a life free from poverty.
At ActionAid, we believe a good quality education should be available to all girls.
Will you donate a monthly gift to support girls back into schools?
Just £7 a month could help fund girls’ education and get them back in the classroom where they belong.
How your donation makes a difference
Your gift can help girls gain an education and break out of the cycle of poverty.
15-year-old Margaret from Kenya is building a brighter future free from poverty.
ActionAid
The difference you could make for a girl like Margaret
15-year-old Margaret, from Kenya, dropped out of school at an early age because her parents couldn’t afford to send her anymore.
But Margaret was able to go to an ActionAid-supported catch-up centre to continue her education. She is now attending a vocational training centre to learn tailoring to become a dressmaker.
“Before I went to the catch-up centres I just stayed at home all day, I would wake up, sweep and do the dishes then wait for lunch time and cook then later supper time and cook, then the day is over.
“Once I got to the centre I was able to read and write and I was also counselled well. I hope that once I finish school I will get a good job and my life will turn out okay.”
Please donate just £7 a month to help girls like Margaret continue their education and take control of their future.
How does education help girls break out from the cycle of poverty?
Educating girls has enormous and far reaching benefits.
- Better-educated women tend to earn more, have better jobs and invest their earnings into their families. Every additional year of school a woman attends increases her wages by an average of 12%.
- Increasing girls' education reduces infant and maternal mortality. Educated mothers have fewer pregnancies, are less likely to give birth as teenagers and are better able to access the maternal healthcare they need.
- Increasing girls' education reduces child marriage. Across 18 of the 20 countries with the highest prevalence of child marriage, girls with no education are up to six times more likely to marry as children than girls with a secondary education.
- Education helps give women the skills they need to take on leadership roles, including political positions. In those roles, they are much more likely to advocate for policies that benefit family and community life, like improved education and social services.1
About ActionAid
ActionAid is an international charity that works with women and girls living in poverty.
Our dedicated local staff are changing the world with women and girls. We are ending violence and fighting poverty so that all women, everywhere, can create the future they want.
We operate in rural and urban communities across Asia, Africa and Latin America.
We're committed to ending the cycle of violence in communities around the world, enabling women's economic empowerment, and supporting women's and girls' rights during humanitarian crises.
Or make a single donation of £20
This project is just one example of ActionAid’s work. Your regular donation may not go towards this project. It will be used where it is needed most to further ActionAid’s general charitable purposes.
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How we use the money you give us
For every £1 we spend:
72p is spent on humanitarian and development programmes and strengthening our global federation
15p is spent on fundraising
10p is spent on support costs (running the organisation)
3p is spent on campaigning for change
These figures are taken from our expenditure in 2021
We’re committed to keeping our supporters happy and being open and honest about how we fundraise. To find out more you can read our supporter promise.
Footnotes
- 1https://www.malala.org/brookings-report/the-worlds-best-investment-girls-education
Page updated 6 September 2023
