Less than half of countries have achieved gender parity UN Report

The gender report by UNESCO’s Global Monitoring Report (GMR) for International Day of the Girl Child, shows that less than half of countries have achieved the goal of gender parity in both Primary and Secondary education.

Irina Bokova, the Director General of UNESCO said educating a girl, educates a nation. “It unleashes a ripple effect that changes the world unmistakably for the better.”

“We have recently set ourselves a new ambitious agenda to achieve a sustainable future,  success in this endeavor is simply not possible without educated, empowered girls, young women and mothers,” she added

The report, released jointly by the GMR and the United Nations Girls’ Education Initiative, shows that, although the goal has not been met by all, progress towards gender parity is one of the biggest education success stories since 2000.

The number of countries that have achieved the goal of gender parity in both primary and secondary education has risen from 36 to 62 since 2,000.

The report further indicated that although 62 million girls are still denied their basic right to education, the number of out-of-school girls has declined by 52 million in the last 15 years.

Bokova said that primary school girls continue to face the greatest challenges in accessing education, she said girls of the school going age that have never steeped in class are equivalent to 15 million girls, compared with just over a third of boys who are out of school.

In 2012, research showed that, at least 19 countries had fewer than 90 girls for every 100 boys in school.

The disparity was greatest in the Arab States and sub-Saharan Africa while in the Central African Republic and Chad in 2012, half as many girls as boys were in secondary school.

UNESCO statistics for this year indicate that boys are more likely to drop out of school than girls in upper secondary education.

Bokova also said gender gaps in youth literacy are narrowing.

“Fewer than seven out of every ten young women in sub-Saharan Africa are expected to be literate by 2015, the lack of progress in literacy among adult women is stark,” she said.

School-related gender based violence is one of the worst manifestations of gender discrimination and holds back education attainment. Likewise, child marriages remain a persistent barrier to girls’ education.

Aaron Benavot, the Director of the GMR, said proper measures in gender have resulted in achieving gender equality.

The report further provides important considerations that should be put in place to achieve gender parity which among them included education to be free in all countries, clear policies to address the problems that many boys face, as well as girls in accessing and completing education and finally suggests alternative secondary education options should be provided for out-of-school adolescents.

UNESCO report also presents to member countries to integrate gender issues into all aspects of policy and planning, a mix of legislative change, advocacy and community mobilization to be initiated by respective government in place.

It further suggests that governments should recruit, train and support teachers effectively to address gender inequality.