So, what you crazy feminist?

Girls should get education, blah, blah, blah, you crazy feminist.  In case that is what you were thinking, I found a great video link with some stats and facts about why girls education is so incredibly important - and in case I haven't said it enough, so many of these 'issues' education, health, hunger, water, economic opportunity, and more are all interconnected.

In case you didn't actually take the time to watch the link, here are some of the stats it shared:

- As female education goes up, HIV rate goes down and malnutrition decreases 43%

Why is this?  The malnutrition most likely has to do with another statistic shared in that link.

"When an educated girl earns income she  reinvests 90% of it in her family, compared to 35% for a boy."  Girls and women earning more tend to put that income toward food, education, and other investments in their children.  Therefore, more education = more economic opportunity = more income = more education and food for the next generation = more economic opportunity...  Half the Sky also has a clip on this concept.  As Hilary Clinton said, "Teach a man to fish and he’ll eat for a lifetime.  Teach a woman to fish and she’ll feed the whole village."  This seems to be a gender difference and one that development agencies increasingly will tap to improve entire communities.

The HIV rate probably has to do with women having awareness of how HIV is transmitted and how to protect themselves.  It also may have to do with seeing opportunities to be financially secure, other than by finding a "Sugar Daddy."  And, see opportunities in general makes women more likely to seek protection.  Some of the reading I have done also suggests educated women are less likely to tolerate a husband who is sleeping around (travel back to High School health class and remember more partners = greater risk of HIV).

 

- If 10% more girls go to secondary school, the country’s economy grows by 3%.

I think the reasoning here is fairly self-explanatory.  More education, better job/ability to get a job, more income.

 From a few of the other links, some noteworthy stats:

- 12 million girls in sub-saharan Africa will never enroll in school, compared to 7 million boys

 For many girls especially, immediate family needs outweigh long term benefits of education.  In theory, parents know the girls need to be in school but gathering water, preparing food, caring for younger siblings, etc. are immediate unmet needs - planning for the future is a luxury.  "Girls are forced to spend 30-85% more time per day working at home and in unpaid market work than boys of the same age."  Gender roles have a huge impact, thus sometimes simply building a school is not the best development plan, because If you build it, they will come does not always hold true.

Hopefully this provides a bit more food for thought on education issues, challenges girls may face, and the extreme importance of overcoming these to give girls this opportunity.