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As per UNICEF, 60 million girls worldwide do not have access to basic education. Of the 960 million people who are illiterate worldwide, two-thirds are women. Around 129 million girls are still out of school, including 32 million of primary school age, 30 million of lower-secondary school age, and 67 million of upper-secondary school age. In countries affected by conflict, girls are more than twice as likely to be out of school as girls in non-affected countries. Globally, 1 in 4 girls (age 15-19) are neither employed nor in school, compared with 1 in 10 boys. As per a World Economic Forum report, women all over the world continue to face economic impediments, unequal wages, challenging workplace conditions, and exclusion from meaningful economic and political productivity. As per a new report on UNESCO, the costs for gender gap in education add up to $10 billion a year.
Gender equality has been an objective of UNESCO for a long time. On December 19, 2011, the United Nations General Assembly declared October 11 as the International Day of the Girl Child to draw the attention of humanity to recognize the rights of girls and to address the unique challenges faced by girls all around the world. As per the UNESCO website describing International Day of the Girl, “If effectively supported and educated, girls have the potential to change the world, both as the empowered girls of today and as tomorrow’s empowered workers, entrepreneurs, household heads, political leaders, and mothers…As we celebrate the 2024 International Day of the Girl Child…UNESCO honors the many ways girls transform how we live, learn, and advocate for a just world.” 
We all know that the first woman ever to become the President of a Rotary Club (Duarte, California) in 1987 after a Supreme Court verdict in favor of women’s membership in Rotary is Dr. Sylvia Whitlock. We also know that the first woman ever to become a Rotary International (R.I.) President is Past R.I. President (2022-23) Jennifer Jones. A number of pioneering projects for Girls’ Empowerment were done under the leadership of Past RI President Jennifer Jones. Girls’ Empowerment has long been an agenda of R.I. But, it acquired the stature of a movement under the leadership of Past R.I. President (2021-22) Shekhar Mehta.
As a young girl with an enduring feminist vision who toppled traditional gender roles in India, as a daughter who was also the provider and caretaker in her parents’ family, as a mother who loves both her boys, as a long time educator who never retired from the cause of promoting education, and now as a Rotary servant who is also the Girls’ Education Chair of the Basic Education and Literacy Rotary Action Group (BELRAG), I truly believe that both girls and boys, men and women have a role to play in converting Girls’ Education as a vehicle of the all-round economic development of our communities through Rotary programs. Let’s use this year’s theme of “Girls’ Vision for the Future” as a way of embracing projects and programs in Rotary that will empower girls to uplift not only our families, but entire communities under the duress of poverty, illiteracy, lack of basic amenities like clean water and sanitation, health crises, climate crises, war and ethnic conflict, and high rates of maternal & child mortality. Some of the critical outcomes of elevated levels of Girls’ Education that we can use to create more equitable opportunities for girls and women in order to spur all-round economic growth, disease prevention, better health outcomes, environmental sustainability, and digital literacy for all, are given below:
- Better employment opportunities leading to greater levels of financial independence among girls. In the US, for example, the mean earnings for women in 2021 stood at $65,987 per year. However, there was a difference of $97,380 in the income of women with a high school diploma versus a professional degree (Statista). An extra year of secondary school for girls can increase their future earnings by 10 to 20 percent.
STEM and digital literacy as pivotal tools for lucrative careers for girls. The global participation of women is much lower than men in the STEM workforce. As per UNDP, “Skills in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) are vital tools for women to play a constructive role in tackling critical and urgent sustainable development problems, ranging from climate crises to food security to gender-based violence.”
Rising graph of economic productivity in family, community, and society co-relates with girls’ education. As per USAID (2017-20), if 10% more adolescent girls attend school, a country’s GDP increases by 3%. Cutting down the school drop out rates both for girls and boys would increase annual GDP growth by 1 to 2%.
Better Health and Wellness Outcomes for Families, including mental health and substance abuse disorders. A child whose mother can read is 50% more likely to live past age 5. Increasing educational opportunities for girls and women leads to reduced domestic abuse and violence, and a reduction in the rate of social malpractices like child marriage. Education empowers women with an increased ability to promote safe environment for children and young generations to thrive (Annual Review of Criminology - Volume 1, 2018).
Girls’ education can create greater awareness and agency among women to tackle climate change. As per an article by Christina Kwauk on February 10, 2021 (Brookings), women are more prone to extreme effects of climate change, and can tackle issues related to reproductive health, pro-environmental decision-making, and access to “green skills for green jobs” with a mode of education focused on environment. A detailed perspective on the ways in which organizations like Rotary International, UNESCO, and “Greening Education Partnerships” are promoting Climate Change Education in schools is available on Volume 9 Issue 1 of the ESRAG Newsletter.
My mind goes back to the Melbourne Convention where current R.I. President (2024-25) Stephanie Urchick underscored the importance of Girls’ Empowerment with reference to a trip that she made to India where she witnessed the transformative power of training women in economic productivity and giving them the tools necessary for all-round development, “That institute was a joyful reminder that when we empower young girls, they can go on to become empowered women, who in turn nurture and empower an entire family and community.” I am so grateful my son Krishna sitting next to me in that vibrant arena listened avidly to R.I. President and seemed to imbibe the rationale of her perspective on Girls’ Empowerment. Amen.