Girls Education - to end the cycle of poverty

COVID-19 has impacted upon all of us in so many ways.  Here in Ireland we endeavoured to keep schools open when possible.  The effects of the pandemic are being felt in every single country and community.  UNICEF estimate that up to 1.6 billion children around the globe have been unable to attend school at this time, about half of whom are girls.  These school closures of course have had a disproportionately negative impact on children in more marginalised areas of the world where access to online learning is not even a fall-back option.  And there are additional concerns that when schools do re-open, girls are less likely than boys to return. 


Above: Second year students in PSMG's Frances Taylor Family Learning Centre PolyTech programme with their hairdressing teacher Grace (far left) and their dressmaking teacher Eunace (far right) in Mwingi, Kenya. I visited this project in 2018.

For example, experience with the Ebola crisis in West Africa in 2014-2015 suggests that, as a result of Covid-19, up to 10 million girls in poor countries may never return to education.  I feel fortunate to have been able to continue working from home during this time with Misean Cara, to provide support to so many projects across over 50 countries that continue to contribute to meaningful change in people's lives despite the challenges of COVID-19. 

Above: Salamatu, Grace and Sarata during science class in Holy Rosary Secondary School, Kenema, Sierra Leone

There are countless ways in which the projects supported can and do build upon local ingenuity and capacities to transform the future for individuals, families and communities.  But it is really worth noting that the provision of high quality education to even one girl can be truly transforming in that for example she will earn up to 25% more for every year spent in secondary school and will also in turn re-invest in her children’s education in the future. There are also encouraging examples such as Mwenda Kacana in the photo below, who teaches at the Presentation Secondary School, in Kaoma, Zambia.  In her own words, Mwenda noted that “In the school where I was posted to for my first teaching job, there was no qualified teacher for grade 8 and 9.  I decided to upgrade my skills so that I could be able to help those children.  I applied to the University of Zambia and I was picked.  I had to pay for the fees by myself – I would use the largest part of my salary for paying the fees and only had a little left for food.  I am glad that I went for further education because the knowledge that I gained is very helpful even up to now.”  It is re-assuring to know that support we give to Girls Education projects has far-reaching and positive effects well into the future, especially when combined with the commitment and contributions of people like Mwenda.

On a lighter note, if you're interested to track my progress during the cycle, you can do so via this live TrackLeaders link here.  Thanks again for your support.