Female Education in Developing Countries

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Global Trends For Girls' Education

Education is a basic human right and girls’ education enables high returns in breaking cycles of poverty and aiding economic growth. In 2021, the G7 heads of state set and endorsed a pair of global objectives on girls’ education to be achieved by 2026 in low- and lower-middle-income countries which are:

• 40 million more girls to be put in schools
• 20 million more girls reading by age 10 or the end of primary school.

New UNESCO data reveals that 50 million more girls have been enrolled in school globally since 2015; and according to UNICEF estimates, there are 122 million girls are out of school around the world.

Credit: Gambia School Support (GSS)

Completion rates of girls increased from 86% to 89% in primary education and 54% to 61% in upper secondary education. That means that 5 million more girls are completing each level of education from primary to upper secondary education now than there were in 2015.

Ensuring that all girls and young women receive an inclusive education is a human right. Girls’ education goes beyond getting girls into school. It is also about ensuring that girls learn and feel safe while in school; have the opportunity to complete all levels of education, acquiring the knowledge and skills to compete in the labour market; gain socio-emotional and life skills necessary to navigate and adapt to a changing world; make decisions about their own lives; and contribute to their communities and the world.
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• Over the last 50 years there has been progress towards gender parity on school enrolment, both at primary and secondary level and global gender equality for primary schools was first achieved in 2013.

• Female enrolment has exceeded male enrolment for the last 20 years, and the gap has been widening with female enrolment rates exceeding male rates by more than 5 percentage points in over 100 countries.

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• However, the push for universal primary education and increased advocacy has led to more girls than ever attending school as there has been significant progress in increasing access to education for girls worldwide.

Global initiatives, including the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals, prioritize girls' education as a key element in international development strategies. Many governments worldwide have implemented policies to reduce gender disparities in education, recognizing the crucial role of educating girls in achieving broader development goals.
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UNICEF's global initiative specifically targets closing the gender gap in education, ensuring that girls across the globe have equal opportunities to complete their schooling.

• The program addresses critical areas such as improving access to education, enhancing the quality of educational resources, and establishing safe, violence-free school environments where discrimination is actively combated.
• These efforts are essential in creating a more equitable world, where every girl has the chance to reach her full potential.

Globally, women are disproportionately represented in humanities, social sciences, and care work, while they make up only 35% of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) graduates at the tertiary level. This gender gap in STEM education highlights a critical need for change.
The United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 4: Quality Education) emphasise the global commitment to enhancing educational opportunities for girls, aiming to bridge the gender divide in education and encouraging more women to pursue STEM careers.

Find out more on how you can improve girls' education and on how we empower girls

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African Trends For Girls' Education

More than half of all children out of primary and secondary school are in Africa, with poverty being a significant barrier to education. Economic constraints often lead families to prioritising boys' education over girls'. Recent years have seen a significant rise in girls' enrollment in both primary and secondary education across Africa. This progress is largely due to the efforts of governments and NGOs implementing policies and programs aimed at promoting universal primary education, resulting in more girls attending school.

While progress has been made, girls still lag behind boys at both lower and upper secondary levels. However, the gender gap in education has decreased over the past two decades.
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• In Sub-Saharan Africa, more adolescent girls are in school than ever before, yet only 42% complete secondary education.

• Alarming data from Violence Against Children Surveys reveal that between 15% and 51% of girls under 18 have experienced sexual violence in countries like Malawi, Nigeria, Zambia, and Uganda; so ensuring safe and inclusive schools is crucial to improving enrolment and academic performance for girls.

• Many parents do not see the economic or social benefits of educating girls and to address this, the World Bank is supporting a large-scale project in Nigeria, which includes an information campaign aimed at debunking myths about girls' education and shifting community perceptions to value girls’ secondary education. Despite these gains, many girls continue to drop out of school due to challenges such as poverty, early marriage, and pregnancy. The transition from primary to secondary education remains a critical point where dropout rates increase, highlighting the need for targeted interventions.

Gender parity in education has been a key focus, especially in Southern and Eastern Africa, where some countries have successfully achieved or are nearing gender equality in primary education. However, significant disparities still exist in secondary and tertiary education, particularly in rural areas. Even when girls are enrolled, the quality of education they receive often falls short, especially in rural regions. These areas frequently suffer from inadequate resources, a shortage of trained teachers, and a lack of gender-sensitive curricula, which impacts the overall learning experience for girls.

There is a growing emphasis on encouraging girls to pursue education and careers in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM):

• this was a central theme at the 2023 Forum for African Women Educationalists (FAWE) Third Triennial International Conference on Girls’ Education, where local leaders, activists, and governments gathered to discuss strategies for increasing girls' participation in STEM fields.

Education is highlighted as a cornerstone for development in the African Union’s Agenda 2063. In alignment with this vision, many African governments have rolled out policies to promote gender equality in education. Initiatives such as free primary education, school feeding programs, and campaigns against child marriage are contributing to these efforts.

While there has been increased financial investment in education, the sector remains underfunded, particularly in the area of girls' education and there is a pressing need for more targeted financial support to ensure that girls receive the education they deserve.​

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Gambian Trends For Girls' Education

In The Gambia, significant barriers to education persist, with child marriage being a prevalent issue that forces many young girls out of school. This practice contributes to a high number of adolescents becoming mothers, further hindering their educational opportunities.
Despite these challenges, The Gambia has made notable progress in increasing girls' enrollment in primary schools. This success is largely due to concerted efforts by the government, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and international partners who have worked tirelessly to make education more accessible for girls.

However, the transition from primary to secondary education remains a concern. While secondary school enrollment has improved, the rate of increase is slower compared to primary education. Several factors contribute to this disparity, including early marriage, financial constraints, and cultural attitudes that discourage girls from continuing their education beyond primary school.
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Organizations like UNICEF, FAWEGAM (Forum for African Women Educationalists Gambia Chapter), and other local NGOs have been pivotal in advocating for girls' education. These organizations provide scholarships, build schools, and conduct community sensitization programs to challenge and change the societal attitudes that hinder girls' educational advancement.

Click here to read more about girls' education in The Gambia.

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