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5 Myths Of Girl Child Education In The Gambia

4/12/2020

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Breaking the myths of girl child education and highlighting the facts

A UNESCO (2017) report suggests that 264 million children of primary and secondary school age are out of school. Worldwide, an estimated 100 million young people are illiterate. Out of this number, the greater percentage are girls who are at an even higher risk of missing out on education due to persistent myths and misconceptions surrounding their education. Some of them are:

Myth 1 - Boys are better at understanding technology than girls

 In reality, technology is a part of the world we live in and a major aspect of the future. The ability to learn to use technology is present in both genders. What is true is that in some cases, girls have less access to technology than boys do as is true of all education and this has to change.
Three girls with an Ipad

Myth 2 - Boys are better in school and education than girls

The truth is that boys are girls perform the same when they are not exposed to barriers to access. Barriers to access are gendered and pervasive as well as rooted deeply in the economy and society. They include low attendance rate for girls, gender-based violence, and lack of funding and early marriage.

Myth 3 - There is no gender bias from teachers

Science and math teachers are not biased toward their male students: in reality, biases are persistent and teachers tend to interact more with boys than girls in science and maths and any other subject deemed technical. For example, a teacher will often explain to a boy how to perform an experiment but do the experiment for a girl if she asks for assistance.

Myth 4 - The STEM field is not for the female gender

When it comes to Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) fields, some people believe that women are just born at a disadvantage. While gender differences are visible on standardised tests, this does not make them innate. This is because, for instance, countries with larger gaps in gender equality also exhibit larger gaps in math performance by gender compared to more equal nations that show the issue is related to systematic conditioning.
Woman in science
Photo by The Medical Research Council: The Gambia

Myth 5 - Education becomes useless once a girl is married

it is believed that a girl ends her education in her husband’s kitchen whereas, in reality, an educated girl remains an asset to her community regardless of marital status as she can earn more, has better outcomes as a mother and is less likely to experience domestic violence. She is also more empowered on all levels.

Why do these myths persist in societies?

Societies hold these myths many times due to a combination of factors that range from a lack of education and awareness, a need to hold on to patriarchy, resistance to change and a love of tradition. Girls are expected to take care of their siblings, perform domestic duties and many times, bring the family out of poverty through early and arranged marriage.

Many people in rural societies especially are resistant to change due to widespread misconceptions regarding girls’ education and a preference for the family hierarchy or structure, which they are used to for generations. It is believed for example that an educated girl will become haughty, promiscuous and difficult to control. In reality, these qualities are not specific to educated girls and have little to do with formal education. 

What are the implications for girls’ education?

Education is not seen as a priority in a lot of cases and the issues that discourage girls education are still not tackled properly at all levels in many areas.
  • This has led to a lower performance from girls and a higher dropout rate. Instead of encouraging girls that perform slower due to gender-based issues, they are simply ignored most times or discouraged and steered towards other areas like cooking and child-rearing.
  • The implication of this is the cycle of girls believing they cannot cope with education because of their supposed “innate” flaws and the duties, which societies have placed on them.
  • This leads to discouragement and the inability to express the burning potentials present in girls. The only solution is to break the myths surrounding girls’ education.
Girl looking at books
Photo by Suad Kamardeen on Unsplash

How to break the myths?

​Breaking the myths involves a multi-layered approach involving the government, teachers, influencers in the community and parents.
1. Parental support as well as support from teachers have proven to be beneficial in creating interest in education for girls and improving attendance, particularly in STEM subjects.
2. Teachers need to be deliberate about taking steps to involve female students, as this is beneficial to everyone.
3. On the government level, there needs to be proper and better investment in education so that girls can be encouraged to get to school. An example is by building separate toilets for girls and providing free regular sanitary products. More women also need to be encouraged to take up public positions and go into decision making so they can mentor the next generation of female leaders.
4. Lastly, influencers in the community such as community leaders should be educated on certain key issues affecting girls’ education, encouraged to put an end to harmful practices such as early marriage, and forced domestication.
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International Day To End Violence Against Women

24/11/2020

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Ending Gender-Based Violence

What Is Violence Against Women?

Violence against women is any act of gender-based violence that results in or is likely to result in physical, sexual, or mental harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life.

It is rooted in the gender inequality that women face throughout their lives from childhood through to their old age. Violence against women comes in many forms; physical, emotional, verbal, and many more. It can come through different channels including intimate partner violence, workplace violence, sexual violence, family, and even societal violence.
Gender inequality and norms play a big role in the acceptability of violence against women and are a root cause of violence against women.
Woman holding a banner for equality
Photo by Micheile Henderson on Unsplash

Why Is Violence Against Women Prevalent?

There are various risk factors that contribute to the prevalence of violence against women, such as:
  • Lower levels of education;
  • A history of exposure to child maltreatment;
  • Witnessing family violence;
  • Attitudes that condone violence;
  • Community norms that privilege or ascribe higher status to men and lower status to women;
  • Low levels of women’s access to paid employment;
  • Weak legal sanctions for sexual violence, and other forms of violence against women;

How To Eliminate Gender-Based Violence From National And International Levels

Violence against women and girls is rooted in gender-based discrimination, social norms that accept violence, and gender stereotypes that continue those cycles of violence. To date, efforts to eliminate violence against women and girls have mainly focused on responding to and providing services to survivors of violence. However, prevention which addresses the structural causes, as well as the risk and protective factors associated with violence is pivotal to eliminating violence against women and girls completely.

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Prevention is the only way to stop violence before it even occurs. It requires political commitment, implementing laws that promote gender equality, investing in women’s organisations, and addressing the multiple forms of discrimination women face daily.
Woman with love should not hurt
Photo by Sydney Sims on Unsplash
Other ways to eliminate violence against women includes the following:
  • Create laws where necessary and enforce existing laws that protect women from discrimination and violence, including rape, beatings, verbal abuse, mutilation, torture, “honour” killings and trafficking;
  • Educate community members on their responsibilities under international and national human rights laws;
  • Create more awareness on the dangers of harmful traditional practices such as female genital mutilation and sexual initiations;
  • Promote the peaceful resolution of disputes by including the perspectives of women and girls;
  • Sensitise the public to the disadvantages of early and forced child marriages;
  • Highlight the value of girls’ education and protect girls from violence in schools;
  • Encourage and support women’s participation in economic development;.
  • Raise public awareness of the poor conditions some women face, particularly in rural areas using specialists so they can feel safe;
  • Encourage and engage young men and boys to become change agents by starting from the home;
  • Give girls a voice by creating workshops that educate them on sexual exploitation, girls’ rights and advocacy and protect their voice.​

Join Us to Educate Girls to Eliminate Gender-Based Violence 

A girl lying on a bed
Photo by bill wegener on Unsplash
Education can contribute towards the eradication of violence against women and girls. An educated girl has the power to speak up herself. Join us to give girls a voice. 
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International Day of The Girl Child 2020 My Voice Our Equal Future

21/9/2020

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International Day of The Girl Child 2020

My Voice, Our Equal Future

​It is a known fact that girls are experts on their own needs and unique realities and all they need is the right support made up of opportunities and skills to make their voices heard. Without this, it is impossible to know exactly what a girl believes is best for her immediate and near future. This is why it is important to give girls a voice and to listen to her when she speaks.

Why The Voices Of Girls Matter?

​The voices of girls matter because by giving a girl a voice, she can express herself and limits are removed. There is more participation in decision making about her life; her choices are broadened and ultimately, the quality of education and enlightenment improves. When a girl has a voice, she can make changes in her community; lead, challenge, push boundaries and improve the lives of those around her by inspiring them. 

What It Means For Girls To Have A Voice?

​Giving girls a voice includes empowering girls and women such that they can participate in decision making at private and public levels and access to resources are no longer one sided (in favour of the male gender) so that both genders become equal participants in leading a productive and reproductive life. When she talks, the world listens.
Girls smiling standing at a door
Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

How Education Can Give Girls A voice?

Every child can reach their full potential through access to education. Without education, girls are exposed and vulnerable and cannot learn how to actualise their ideas and dreams. Education therefore provides the foundation upon which boundless opportunities for future generations of women is built.

Education gives girls a voice because education is key to addressing poverty and fighting disease. An educated woman is an empowered woman that can use her voice to effectively contribute to society, the economy and transforms her family and community through her choices. Being in school makes a girl aware of her rights and improves her own health which in turn affects her family positively.

Education also gives girls the confidence to speak up and increases the probability of them being heard. By giving women and girls a voice, they can join the campaign for equality.

In order to support girls' education, it is important to go beyond providing learning opportunities, it requires keeping girls safe and protecting them from all forms of violence within and outside their places of learning.

Importance Of Our Equal Future

An equal future is one in which there is gender equality. Gender equality goes beyond being a fundamental human right, it is the bedrock of a peaceful, prosperous and sustainable world. In an ideal world, gender equality should be the norm. Reducing inequality makes economies stronger and builds societies that are stable and resilient allowing everyone equal opportunity to fulfil their potential.

An equal future is one where girls and boys enjoy socially valued goods, opportunities and resources and rewards the same way. It does not mean that men and women become the same; it just means that access to opportunities does not depend on gender.

An equal future by giving girls a voice is linked to the realisation of basic human rights for all. It is a future in which girls and boys enjoy the same opportunities, obligations and rights in all areas of life.

There is equal distribution of power and influence and equal opportunity for financial independence through work or business. Both genders enjoy equal access to education and the chance to build up on their personal talents, interests and ambitions; share responsibility for the children and the home and are free from gender-based violence both at home and at work. Lastly, both genders are completely free from coercion and intimidation in an equal future.

From £10 a month, you can give a girl a voice through education. Find out how to sponsor a girl.

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Covid-19 Pandemic and The Impact on Girls Education in Africa and The Gambia

16/9/2020

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Impact of Covid-19 on Girls' Education and Violence Against Women

How Covid-19 is affecting the education and safety of girls in The Gambia and Africa

The spread of COVID-19 across Africa has had profound impacts on women and girls as they are particularly vulnerable to the overwhelming effects of the pandemic. As such, it is important for African governments to pay special attention to them as a way to protect them from the ripple effects of the pandemic.

The lockdown and its effects have led to reduced access to health services for women and girls in Africa. With most efforts and resources focused on containing the spread of COVID-19, essential services such as access to sexual and reproductive health services have been affected. Rates of delivery in health centres have also dropped significantly.
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Since informal workers made up majorly of women make up more than 90% of the labour force in Sub-Saharan Africa, these jobs have been affected the most during the pandemic. This means that the ability to make money affected women more than men due to the complete or partial closure of borders by governments. Having both children and husbands at home all (or most) of the time means that women and girls spend even more time in domestic work and unpaid care. This includes women in corporate structures as well. Women and girls are expected to care for the elderly, the sick and other members of their households while most often providing income for the family as well. This places an unfair burden on them.
Covid-19 Stay Home sign
Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash

Covid-19 impact on violence against women and girls in Africa

Women and girls are also at a higher risk of gender-based violence even more so now. Reports of violence against women and girls particularly domestic violence are on the rise in several countries according to a recent study by UN women due to financial worries, security and health worries creating tensions pronounced by confined and uncomfortable living conditions of lockdown. Furthermore, 44% of women across Africa are victims of intimate partner violence with figures climbing higher during the imposed lockdown. In South Africa for example, a 37% increase in gender-based violence was reported during the first week of lockdown. One helpline in Zimbabwe noted that the number of abuse cases tripled.

The increase in gender-based violence is not only towards adult women but also targeted at young girls with perpetrators being mostly those close to the victim. In Nigeria, there has been an increase in rape and gender-based violence with more than 700 rape incidents reported across the country in the period of January-May with abuse cases against women and children 3 times higher during the lockdown.
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Not only this, the closure of schools across the continent posts a grim reality that many girls will never go back to school since a whopping 40% of girls in Sub-Saharan African marry before the age of 18; with parents being unable to make as much money as they are used to, marrying girls off (selling their daughters) will reduce the number of mouths to feed in the household. This means that young women and girls in Africa are particularly vulnerable to the secondary effects of the pandemic as a result of deep-seated harmful social and gender norms and intricate types of discrimination based on their age, gender and other exclusion criteria. There is also an increase in the exposure of girls to Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) as well as Child Early and Forced Marriage (CEFM) due to the pandemic.
Woman with baby on her back in a field
Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

African governments and society's responsibility to protect women and girl during this pandemic

African governments, therefore, have to urgently address both the direct and secondary effects of the pandemic on women and girls by protecting the progress made in the empowerment and protection of girls particularly in the last decade.

​Responses to the COVID-19 pandemic must include a gender-based approach to the provision and guarantee of human rights including basic rights such as access to food and water, shelter and access to essential sexual and reproductive health services.

There must be special palliatives targeted at girls and ongoing welfare services regardless of the pandemic such that women and girls can seek refuge when needed and get tailor-made responses to their unique and collective circumstances.

Help us to feed girls and their families

During this difficult period of Covid-19, girls' with mothers who sell in the markets earning less then $1 a day are no longer going working. The livelihood and means of daily survival has been stopped as the markets are closed, while some only open for short periods.
You donation can support the families with basic food supplies. Any amount will support the girls and their families during this difficult time.
Use of Proceeds
The funds will be used to buy food items such as groceries to be distributed among the girls currently being sponsored by the Foundation.
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See our social media pages to find out more about the day-to-day operations of the work we do in educating girls in The Gambia

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Child Education Sponsorship in The Gambia

24/7/2020

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Sponsoring Child Education In The Gambia

​What is Child Sponsorship?

Child sponsorship is a type of fundraising effort in which a child beneficiary is linked to a donor sponsor through the aid of a charitable organisation. In certain situations, the donated funds go to a lot of uses including health, security and infrastructure in the child’s community while in other cases, the funds are only used for the purpose of education whereby the child will be provided with equipment, books and uniform to help with their education.
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Recent research, however, has shown that children do better in their education and other areas when their family and community are thriving around them hence the reason why child sponsorship programs now deal with issues of sustainability such as the provision of clean water, income generation schemes, health care and education centres in areas without schools. (For more information, visit Actionaid
Children in a classroom

 Why sponsor a child to go to school?

Sponsoring a child affords you the opportunity to contribute your quota to helping individuals and communities in need. Every little helps when it comes to child sponsorship and you can even learn about a distant culture and community as a bonus, right from your location.
  1. Child sponsorship goes beyond helping just a child; it has a ripple effect because by sponsoring the child, the family is also being sponsored by extension. It helps to end the cycle of poverty.
  2. A sponsored child is more likely to finish their education. With the harsh reality of many children being forced to drop out of school early due to their parent’s financial constraints, many children can finish their education through sponsorship. Education is key to combating poverty and better education means a better future through more opportunities and a chance to end the cycle of poverty. 
  3. Through child sponsorship, you can put a name and a face to change and the war against poverty. The figures showing millions of people living in poverty are not easy to comprehend for many. By sponsoring a child, you are connected to the reality people face in a unique way. Sponsors are provided with regular updates on the children they are sponsoring and this helps you witness the growth of the children being sponsored.
  4. You know exactly what your money is used for. It is more transparent than regular philanthropy and you can see real and tangible evidence of how your money is improving lives.
  5. You can make a substantial difference in an affordable way. Child sponsorship is one of the best ways to see how a small amount of money can bring about incredible change.  For more information, please visit UNICEF 
Children sitting on chairs in a classroom
Photo by Doug Linstedt on Unsplash

How to empower a girl child through education

Care.org notes that an educated girl is more likely to delay marriage and childbirth enjoy greater income and productivity and raise fewer, healthier and better-educated children. Empowering a girl child through education can be achieved in a variety of ways. One of which is to make schools for girls safe and their environment conducive. Education truly empowers the girl child. Evidence suggests that women and girls who have access to education and have skills in their arsenal to be independent economically are empowered to live healthier and more productive lives.

Empowerment is the process of gaining confidence and strength particularly in exercising control over one’s life and claiming one’s rights. Girls today become women tomorrow and for them to be empowered, inequality and gender gaps have to reduce. Gender bias, culturally imbibed malpractices, child marriage, poor health and sanitation are among the negative issues being faced by girls. Lack of education, however, remains the biggest problem of them all. 

In order for these problems to be solved, there needs to be identified by the victims first. A lack of education prevents this from happening. Without girls knowing their rights, they cannot accomplish their dreams. This is why girls should be empowered through education.

At the SaGG Foundation, you can sponsor a girl from £10 a month to enable a girl to gain access to education in The Gambia. This will enable her to build a future for herself and her family. You can also make a donation towards the provision of educational supplies such as books, bags, uniforms and stationary for girls in The Gambia.
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What you get for sponsoring a child through education?

The greatest gain you can have for sponsoring a child through education is a sense of giving hope. Your sponsorship makes a difference in the lives of children surely but a child knowing that irrespective of their unique circumstances, someone cares enough about them to sponsor their education is priceless and makes a huge difference in the life of that child.
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In some cases, you can get to have a life long relationship with the child you are sponsoring through regular correspondence with the child and receive updates on how the child's schooling and welfare. Sponsoring a child through education allows you to know that you are helping communities to grow and become self-sustaining. 
Benefits of child sponsorship
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Educating young girls after marriage

8/7/2020

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Empowering Young Girls Through Education After Marriage

The SaGG Foundation (Sponsor a Gambia Girl) is pleased to announce that after reading about the difficult ordeal, faced by a young promising girl caught up in a short-lived marriage that ended in abandonment by her Gambian Swedish-based husband, few days after childbirth. Has taken the initiative to support the girl into further education at the Management Development Institute (MDI).
 
The story which was first published by the widely read online media platform What’s On-Gambia, followed by an in-depth interview conducted by Gambia Talents Promotion, featured Mariama (not her real name), narrating her ordeal. Due to marriage, she stopped her studies and was a stay at home wife facing immense challenges and difficulties. Her situation became worse when she was divorced by her husband only few days after giving birth to her first child. Leaving her with the sole responsibility to take care of her and her son’s wellbeing. Left in such a situation without employment, made Mariama helpless.
African woman in field with baby on her back
Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash
The SaGG Foundation, which is instituted based on empowering the girl child through education, took on the initiative to sponsor Mariama to continue her studies. She is now enrolled at the MDI on a two years course, studying for a qualification on National Diploma in Gender and Development, commencing this July. The Foundation is also supporting Mariama with her transportation cost when traveling to and from school.
 
Upon receiving this sponsorship opportunity Mariama reacted by saying ‘I’m appreciative and lucky to be the recipient of this scholarship. I am majoring in activism with an emphasis on gender-based violence. I aspire to have a career as an Activist. With this scholarship, I am one-step closer to my goal, without having to worry about any financial burden; this would allow me to focus on my studies. I intend to take this opportunity and immerse myself in all that it presents to better myself, my family, and my country’.
 
The SaGG Foundation prides itself on using education as the tool to give girls a life of freedom, independence, and a future full of possibilities. Where 100% of all sponsorship goes to the girl’s education. Founded in November 2018, the Charity is now sponsoring 140 girls into education, from nursery through to university. Our Mantra remains the same, Education Changes Everything for A Girl! You can find out more about our work by visiting our social media pages Facebook, Instagram and Twitter
Two girls sitting and writing
By sponsoring a girl from £10 a month, you will enable her to access education in The Gambia to build a better future for herself and her family.
Sponsor a girl today
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Breaking Down Barriers to Girls Education

12/6/2020

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How to break down the barriers to girl child education

​The barriers to girls Education are historical! I will even go further by saying that girls have always faced obstacles since the introduction of formal education in the Gambia compared to boys. Although progress has been made over the years and the gap is shrinking, more still needs to be done in sensitizing people in this regard. A significant portion of this success can be attributed to the Education for All initiative, which was implemented by UNESCO in 2004.

The impediments to girls' education are many, but if I were to attribute it to any major problem, I would say it’s more of a cultural problem than anything else. I want to focus on culture because it drives the customs and social institutions of a country, thereby controlling the mindset and way of life of the people. With that, the relevance of culture in this cannot be overemphasized. Culture governs how people live, think, and behave. Culture generally determines who we are mentally and emotionally and that it also shapes our belief system.  
Two women and girls walking
Photo by 2Photo Pots on Unsplash

How cultural practices contributes to the barrier of educating the girl child?

​Social expectations have been a form of pressure placed on girls in the Gambian context. The traditional family structure values a girl’s role in domestic labour, from cooking and cleaning to caring for younger siblings, especially as they get older. Domestic work in certain family settings can be daunting, and that has prevented so many girls from attending school. When the culture values girls as nothing but marriage material and prepares them for that, then their education becomes secondary. This problem is even more present in rural areas.
 
And even in the event that a girl is enrolled in school, primary school completion remains a challenge. While the primary school enrolment gap has shrunk, primary school completion is a different story. According to UNICEF, for every 100 boys that complete their basic education in The Gambia, only 74 girls do the same, with the numbers even lower in some areas at 64 percent and 44 percent. At the secondary school level, in The Gambia, the net secondary school enrolment rate is low, to begin with, and girls only constitute approximately 30 percent of all students enrolled in secondary or vocational schools.
A girl doing domestic work at home
Photo Credit: UNICEF

What is society's role in breaking the cultural barrier to girls' education?

​Arguably, the issues of girls’ education circles back to culture. Both the dropout rates at the primary and secondary levels are generally connected to a traditional family structure that values a girl’s role in domestic labour more than education in certain families and certain regions. I see culture as the biggest hindrance here, and a paradigm shift is needed in this area.

​Cultural beliefs have a way of holding society with a tight grip, but with a robust sensitization campaign, we can start to break down the line of thinking that has proven to be a barrier to girls' education. As the backbone of the family unit and keeping players in the economy, women play a critical role. Therefore, it is very important for all of us to join hands and support in the breaking down of the line of thinking that is obstructing girls’ education.

Author: Momodou Ndow

Mr Ndow lives and works in the United States.

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Girls' education provision in The Gambia

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Read more about the education provision for girls in The Gambia. And find out more about our passion to advocate and champion for female rights to education.

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Educating young Gambian girls about leadership

15/4/2020

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Let Us Teach Young Gambian Girls About Female Leadership

#ClaimThisSpace

I am not one for a beauty pageant, However, I was captivated by Miss Universe 2019, Ms. South Africa Zozibini Tunzi. In the final round of the competition when the 3 finalists were asked the question by Steve Harvey “what is the most important thing to teach young girls today?” the response of Ms. South Africa blew me away.

She said and I quote “
the most important thing we should be teaching young girls today is LEADERSHIP. It is something that has been lacking in young girls and women for a very long time. Women are the most powerful beings in the world and women should be given every opportunity to take up space. Nothing is as important than to take up space in society”. Zozi has redefined the ideals of beauty in pageantry, has broken the mold and re-written history. She has affirmed that black children’s dreams are valid. 
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Have you watched the movie “Black Panther”? Don’t you just like the way it views and portrays women. Strong female characters have long played a huge role in the kingdom of Wakanda, as a fierce all-female special forces outfit tasked with protecting the king. We see a powerful superhero only protected by women? Now that’s new. Isn’t it amazing to see King T’Challa conspicuously surrounds himself with women, not just for the convenience, but because these are the people he can TRUST and trusting people as a leader is no small thing.
beauty queen wearing a crown
Photo by insider.com
Now back to reality. In The Gambia we live in a patriarchal society and as a society, we need to do more to teach young girls about leadership, be it in the political, economic, business and social spheres. In all progressive countries, their leaders recognize that gender equality is not only the right thing to do but also the smart thing. It makes economic sense as well. However, in a country like ours, achieving gender equality is difficult given some of our cultural and social norms. It is for this reason that young girls from Banjul to Koina need to be taught about leadership and its about time a girl’s leadership and mentorship academy is established in The Gambia. Such a program will build the capacity of young girls and future women leaders to have a much greater impact, build their confidence to compete in the real world as they embark on their career paths. This is one of the ways for young Gambian girls to claim the leadership space in their communities.

Society calls for More Women in Leadership

Feminist text
Photo by Jen Theodore on Unsplash
We want to see more Gambian women stepping up to the challenge of leadership in both the public and private sectors. While impressive strides have been made in terms of gender equality and girls’ education at the primary level in terms of access (quality is still a challenge), we need to advocate for this in secondary and tertiary levels.  Women make up half of our population and they must take their rightful place in society. The Gambia must capitalize on the human capital of women who by number alone make up a large pool of potential talent needed to drive the country forward. An aeroplane does not fly on one wing, it needs both wings to fly. Likewise, The Gambia’s development trajectory will be constrained if the other 50% of the population (our women folks are not central to the development process). Of course, certain challenges abound that have held Gambian girls and women back, but these challenges can be further reduced by having targeted mentorship, access to education and other initiatives that encourage more girls to realize their vast potential. The number of women in leadership roles is still too low compared to what it could be, and nurturing growth in this arena will benefit both men and women in The Gambia.

To nurture young girls as leaders we will need our girls to stay in school. #handsoffourgirls. To the old men in our society, please leave our young girls alone and follow women your age. Early marriage is one of the harmful traditions widely practiced in Gambian and African societies. The practice involves the marriage of girls who have not achieved full maturity and lack the ability to control their sexuality. Across Africa, 125 million girls and young women today were married before their 18th birthday, and more than 1 in 3 young women in Africa were married during childhood, and 1 in 10 before their 15th birthday. The consequences of early marriage are enormous in terms of foregone educational and economic opportunities; maternal morbidity and mortality; more limited voice and power within the family and community; life-course and inter-generational poverty transfers. End early marriages, allow our young girls to stay in school and do not condemn them to a life of perpetual poverty.
A combination of community awareness-raising, support for girls’ secondary education, economic strengthening initiatives and legal empowerment for girls and women needs to be considered, but these should be designed with an in-depth understanding of the local culture and context to avoid generating negative or unforeseen consequences.

Education contributes to the increase of female leadership

Two girls sitting and writing
Education alone is not the only solution, nevertheless, schooling is fundamental to expanding girls’ options. Given that research has found that each and every year of schooling matters, and that secondary school makes the most difference to girls’ power to make decisions, the government need to invest in affordable, quality primary education for all girls and ensure that high school is not seen as an add-on for the wealthy, but a given opportunity for all.
Without the active participation of women and the incorporation of women's perspective at all levels of decision-making, the goals of equality, development, and peace cannot be achieved.

The urgency of having more women in leadership positions in The Gambia as in all African countries was alluded to by Former Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf during an interview to mark International Women’s Day. She was asked:

“If you have just one proposal to share with your colleagues, the Heads of State of Africa, in order to promote a sustainable gender equality process, what will be this one key action?”

Her response was:
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“I would propose to my peers to increase the level of women’s participation in leadership roles and decision-making in all levels of society. We need to redeploy energies and resources towards pursuing not only gender equity but women’s participation in decision-making to generate the desired change. But more needs to be done, and this would be my appeal to my fellow Heads of State and Government.”

Let us all support our young Gambian girls to #ClaimThisSpace. Young Gambian girls can be leaders in their chosen career professions. It was Sheryl Sandberg the founder of “Lean In” who said, we should think of a career like a marathon, it is long, grueling and ultimately rewarding. What voices do the men hear from the beginning? ‘You’ve got this. Keep going. Great race ahead of you.’ What do the women hear from day one out of college? ‘You sure you want to run? Marathon’s really long. You’re probably not going to want to finish. Don’t you want kids one day?’

In the not too distant future in The Gambia, we will have a young generation of Zozibini Tunzi with natural beauty, smart, witty, intelligent and bold to take action. We will have strong  Wakanda young girls and women who will be trusted leaders (don’t get me started about how male politicians have failed us miserably). We will have strong female characters that will claim their leadership space competitively and not out of tokenism.

I am a believer.

Author: Dr Basil Jones

​Advisor to the Special Envoy on Gender and Vice President, African Development Bank

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Importance of girls' education

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Find out about the benefits and advantages of educating girls.
Why educate girls
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An equal world is an enabled world

5/3/2020

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An equal world is an enabled world for all to thrive

Making up half of the world’s population, women and girls also make up half of the world’s potential. Gender equality is not only a fundamental human right, it is the bedrock of sustainable development, peaceful societies and notable economic growth.

Despite this, there is still a huge gap in achieving gender equality and creating an enabled world for women and girls. It is therefore important to consistently work towards creating equal access to economic resources for women and girls; access to quality education and health; adequate participation in decision making and putting an end to gender violence.

What does an equal world mean?

An equal world is one in which there is equal and easy access to opportunities and resources, economic participation and decision making for both genders. This is a world in which the differences in needs, behaviours and aspirations of both genders are valued equally and girls, women, boys and men are treated equally at all levels of society.

What is an enabled world?

An enabled world makes things possible for girls and women. It equips them with the tools and resources to be able to do a particular thing and makes the achievement of their dreams easier. It is a world that gives permission or right to women and girls to pursue those opportunities readily available to make their desires come to reality. Both genders are equipped for success in an enabled world.
International Women's day flyer

How to create an equal world

​In order to create gender equality, it is important to talk to women and girls. The voices of women and girls are not heard in both global and national decision making. By talking to them and making their voices heard, we are one step closer to an enabled world.
It is also necessary to put an end to child marriage and sexual harassment permanently. Early marriage continues to truncate the dreams and futures of many girls, as well as sexual harassment and the ensuing stigma.

It is also important to make education gender sensitive. This can be done by increasing access to education and promoting gender sensitivity and positive gender stereotypes. By the same token, mothers need to be educated and empowered so that they can in turn empower their daughters.
Proper value has to be given to the unpaid work, women and girls do. Likewise, the media needs to highlight this more. More women need to be in leadership position so that they can become change agents by being active participants at the local, regional and national levels.
​
Not only this, women and girls need to be encouraged to go into non-traditional vocations to help break social taboos. Lastly, it is important to work hand in hand with women and girls to end violence, reduce backlash and bridge the gap of gender inequality in order to create an equal and enabled world.
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Photo by Micheile Henderson on Unsplash

Achieving an equal world for all

In all parts of the world, there are notable discriminatory laws which prevent women from fulfilling their potentials by limiting their ability to work, thereby reducing their economic security and confidence.

On average, women have only three-quarters of the employment rights available to men. It is important to note however that increasing the participation of women in the labour market and giving equal employment rights has major economic benefits. In an ideal world of gender equality, there is no violence against women and girls. This in turn makes the society healthier and enhances overall well-being. The result is more peace.

World economy will also take a positive boost. Some countries like Canada have recorded sharp increases in their GDP when they put strategies in place to advance gender equality. In terms of business, gender diversity in leadership roles improves business performance. Between 15 and 35% increase in financial returns is predicted for companies with the highest levels of diversity (gender, racial or ethnic).

When household work is shared, relationships tend to work better and people are happier. By eliminating gender imbalances surrounding unpaid housework and childcare, the gender wage gap reduces and the likelihood of divorce drops.
children smiling
Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash
Lastly, an equal world makes the lives of children better. When both parents are involved in childcare, gender role stereotypes are broken and children are encouraged to think critically about gender stereotypes, which in turn helps them master the skills to maintain healthy, equal relationships in the future, thus continuing the cycle of an enabled world.

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Barriers and obstacles to girls education

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 Find out why girls find it difficult to access and stay in school. Click the link to read more about the challenges that girls face to access education in The Gambia
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Importance of appropriate budgeting for child education in the Gambia

16/1/2020

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Budgeting for Children Education and it's Impact to Girls' Schooling

In simple terms, ‘child budgeting’ is not about lining up children and placing  cash in each and every child’s hands. Rather ‘child budgeting’ is about putting national resources – money, materials, services, facilities, institutions and personnel – to sectors that address the needs of children. But why do we have to advocate for ‘child budgeting’?
 
In the first place, children, just as all other citizens, have a right to development. But more than that is the fact that children are the products of society without their consent. No child asked to be born. Hence those who produce children bear the highest obligation, morally, legally and politically to take care of those children. It was Nelson Mandela who noted that the true character of a society is revealed in how it treats its children. Hence society has an indubitable duty to protect and develop children which is directly linked to the survival, strength and security of society itself.
 
Children have rights like all human beings which must be recognized and respected. Thus,  it is the government, parents and adults who  are the duty bearers who must fulfill the rights of the child. Child rights essentially relate to the promotion and protection of the welfare and development of the child, as well as ensuring that the child is  able to participate in family, societal and national affairs. If the saying that children are the leaders of tomorrow, then this means that the existence and development of society cannot be divorced from children.
 
All national and international laws and policies have affirmed that children have rights, and their development is  primarily a governmental duty. A former UNICEF Executive Director Carol Bellamy once noted that, “A century that began with children having virtually no rights is ending with children having the most powerful legal instrument that not only recognizes but protects their human rights.” Hence the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child noted in Article 4 that,
 
“States Parties shall undertake all appropriate legislative, administrative, and other measures for the implementation of the rights recognized in the present Convention. With regard to economic, social and cultural rights, States Parties shall undertake such measures to the maximum extent of their available resources and, where needed, within the framework of international co-operation.”
​
Children in a classroom
A review of these domestic and international laws would indicate that child budgeting is a requirement, a and should be used as a means to the fulfillment of the rights of children and be understood in the context of national budgets. Many people do not realize that the most important tool of a government is not the police, army, roads, natural resources, electricity, offices or vehicles, etc. The most powerful tool for a government is the BUDGET!
 
The budget is about the income or revenue that a government makes out of our taxes, rates, service charges, royalties, loans, grants and donations that it receives from diverse sources and how it plans to spend that money. It is from the budget that a government funds all its operations, builds roads and hospitals, pays salaries and all office operations, and even pays for the travels that the President and members of the Government undertake. Hence, what is not put in the national budget is not therefore a priority for the Government. Therefore, if the issue of children is not topmost in the minds of the people who make the national budget, then it means that they will prepare a budget that will not allocate money to sectors that serve children.
 
Focusing on the 2020 national budget, only 4.3 billion dalasi  will be allocated to the key child sectors of education (D2.6B) and health (D1.5B) out of a total national budget of 21.3 billion dalasi. This represents only about 20% or one-fifth of the national budget. Is this enough to build Gambian children to truly become empowered and responsible adults who could effectively lead and sustain this country today and tomorrow? That is a question for us all.
 
For the moment the state of Gambian children leaves much to be desired even though the country has made gains in universal primary education and immunization. Recent studies have identified key challenges in the education sector these include the following:
  • High numbers of out-of-school children
  • Stagnant gross enrollment rates,
  • Low learning outcomes as indicated by national examinations,
  • Below-target primary completion rates
  • Student-textbook ratios,
  • Low teaching quality
  • Insufficient resource mobilization.
 
These are challenges that directly undermine the growth and development of children hence threaten the overall growth and development of The Gambia today and tomorrow. Meantime 7.7 billion dalasi will be spent on debt servicing in 2020 alone! One wonders, where did all of those millions of dollars of loans go to while the country remains highly indebted and poor? 
woman on a wheelchair with two girls
​It is in light of the above that the need to advocate for child budgeting is urgent and necessary. It is time to make sure that policy makers, lawmakers, politicians, leaders in all categories and citizens in general understand a budget and also know what is child budgeting and why it is so important. In a broader sense, child budgeting also addresses and fulfills gender and pro-poor budgeting as well. They all refer to the need to have the Government spend more resources in the social services so that people can have their needs met.
 
When we talk about social services, we refer to education, healthcare, water and electricity supply  and skills development.  These are opportunities and facilities that will enable children to grow and develop themselves with the right mindset, ability and dignity to become true leaders, inventors, creators and producers of today and tomorrow. Child budgeting is therefore an investment in children hence investment in the future and continued growth and overall development of society. Thus a proper child, gender and pro-poor budget is the bedrock for national development.

A girl smiling
Having a child-friendly budget however is not the end of the story. The next step is the monitoring of the budget to ensure that it is properly utilized. All citizens including children should therefore know how to track budgets. This is not merely a question of being an activist; it is a matter for every citizen to become vigilant in order to hold the Government accountable.
 
The foundation for development and performance is accountability. It is only through accountability that we can know whether resources are being used properly or misused; whether we are making progress or failure; whether public institutions and officials are doing their jobs rightly or wrongly and effectively or are lazy. Without accountability, standards fall, corruption becomes the order of the day and provision of social services collapse and everyone gets miserable because cost of living goes up while people are denied opportunities such as good facilities and quality services that they have already paid through their taxes.

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Author: Madi Jobarteh

Madi is a Human Rights defender and Country Representative of Westminster Foundation for Democracy.

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