Efforts to Support Girls’ Education Paying Off in Rwanda
The 2011 final examination results were recently released in Rwanda and show that girls’ school performance is improving. Results show that five out of the ten best students countrywide are girls, which proves that the country’s efforts to support girls’ education are paying off. The results also show that girls’ secondary schools are performing exceptionally well, while rural schools are still posting better results than those located in urban areas. Although the examination results look promising, there is still a lot of work to be done for girls and women in Rwanda. Read it all here.
Education for Women is Paramount, says Kristof
Nicholas Kristof, one of our favorite advocates for girls’ education, recently spoke at Stanford University on the profound importance of educating girls and women. The New York Times columnist and two-time Pulitzer Prize winner argued that education, particularly for girls and young women, is the key to enacting change in impoverished and developing countries. He went on to say that educating a girl has the power to inspire dramatic change around the world. Kristof ended his discussion by saying, “We, sitting here, have truly won the lottery of life, but with it comes responsibility,” he said. “What will you do with your responsibility?” Read more here.
Micro-Credit Model Helps Empower Zambian Women
The United Nations Development Program is supporting a Bangladeshi micro-credit program that provides loans to female entrepreneurs in Zambia. The loans, which are exclusively given to the most under-privileged women, ranging from $50 to $400. One woman, Elizabeth Sakala-Banda, used a $100 loan to stock her grocery shop with a wide variety of products. Within six months, she had paid off her loan, and made a profit of US$315. Since then, she has taken a second loan to purchase maize and fertilizer, enabling her to participate in her local farmer’s co-operative, and opening up a whole new income-generating activity for her family. Like most women in the program, the added income they earn is used to pay for their children’s education. “The extra money I make helps me buy school uniforms, books and other items for my children,” Elizabeth says. Read more about the program here.
