Member-only story
Girls Education in the Commonwealth
We are seeing more children in school throughout the world but 262 million are not. 617 million which is more than half the school-age population worldwide, have not reached the minimum proficiency in reading and mathematics.
Many of our Commonwealth countries have made some steady progress towards gender improvements in education as we have seen girls out-perform boys in a number of countries. It is clear that there must be more opportunities in education for both girls and boys. Nonetheless, girls are at a significant disadvantage in a number of countries and there is a strong case for them to receive support.
That is why, news of our Parliamentary Chair, Helen Grant MP the UK’s Special Envoy on Girls’ Education was much welcomed news. As Special Envoy, she will champion the UK’s global expertise on education and secure backing for ambitious initiatives to get 40 million more girls in primary and secondary school in developing countries by 2025 and improve learning levels, so girls can achieve their full potential.
Morally we understand that girls getting further education is the right thing to do but also pragmatically it is a fantastic investment. It can help build more prosperous societies as well as allow girls to get married later, earn more money and have healthier families. Unfortunately the recommended 12 years of…
