8th March 2023
Happy International Women’s Day!
A day dedicated to celebrating women’s achievements worldwide, raising awareness of the challenges women face, and determining ways of achieving gender equality. This year the theme is Women in Education, Technology, and innovation, for which the Broken Chalk women’s team manage to make a video to commemorate the day, to raise awareness of the challenges women still face in education, and to identify the gaps and solutions for achieving gender equality. Gender equity is the process of being fair to women and men. Women have continued to pursue professional education and careers, but not without barriers. To ensure fairness, methods and efforts must be available to help women across the globe against any social, political, or cultural disadvantages they might face.
Article 28 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child recognizes equal opportunities and compulsory and available primary education for all. To this day, 129 million girls are still not going to school, although more girls have access to education than ever before. The enjoyment of women’s right to quality education is still affected by multiple gender-based barriers, such as wrong stereotypes, child marriage and pregnancy, poverty, or gender-based violence. Although gender-equitable education systems build prosperity for the whole country, poor families often prioritise boys when investing in education. However, education for young girls will also enhance their countries’ social and economic well-being, as they are more likely to invest in and prioritize their children’s education because of the value of schooling.
Girls’ education goes beyond entering school: it is necessary to ensure a safe learning environment that enables girls to complete their learning and acquire the knowledge and skills needed to compete in the labour market. However, in some countries, schools still do not meet safety, hygiene and sanitation requirements or the same teaching practices creating gender gaps in learning.
Our team reflected on the ongoing education challenges women still face in their countries of origin and as possible solutions. In the so-called “Global North,” girls’ access to education is not conditioned by gender but stereotypes still play a role in relegating women to the humanities instead of science subjects. In some countries such as Italy injustices and discrimination in access to the labour market still occur. On the other hand, on the African continent, poverty plays a crucial role in access to education. One of the main concerns is the fact that for many girls, education is put on hold: there is no continuity. This is the case in Kenya, where crises caused by drought and famine challenge the durability of girls’ education. Girls also drop out of school due to early pregnancies and marriages. In Uganda and Mozambique, this phenomenon is very much present: society must become more sensitive to the importance of sending girls to school for social development. Also, in some Asian countries like Indonesia child marriage is still a cause for which women are stopping school and focusing on taking care of the children and the household. Although the government is acting to implement policies that improve the quality of Indonesian girls’ education, what needs to be spread is public awareness of the values and importance of education for girls. Investing in girls’ schooling transforms communities, countries, and the world. It strengthens economies and reduces inequality. Another challenge women may face is the case of Turkiye, where female university students still face strip searches by police officers.
As always, it is Broken Chalk’s mission to spread knowledge about the importance of education in actualizing human rights. This year Broken Chalk will focus on improving girls’ access to education and raising awareness about the positive impact that female education has on society in general as well as on economic and social well-being. Because women’s rights are human rights, we will continue to support efforts to achieve gender equality across all domains, not just education. Gender equity improves opportunities for all and allows people to pursue their dreams despite gender. Equity leads to equality.
Happy International Women’s Day!
Signed by
Broken Chalk
No comment yet, add your voice below!