The report further reveals that on average, women who have secondary education are more likely to work and they earn almost twice as much as those with no education/WB FILE
NAIROBI,Kenya,Jul 13- Not educating girls costs countries trillions of dollars, says a new World Bank Report.
According to the report released recently,limited educational opportunities for girls and barriers to completing 12 years of education cost countries between $15 trillion and $30 trillion in lost lifetime productivity and earnings.
World Bank CEO Kristalina Georgieva says gender inequality should not be left to get in the way of global progress.
“Inequality in education is yet another fixable issue that is costing the world trillions. It is time to close the gender gap in education and give girls and boys an equal chance to succeed, for the good of everyone.” said the World Bank CEO.
The report further reveals that on average, women who have secondary education are more likely to work and they earn almost twice as much as those with no education.
Other positive effects of secondary school education for girls include a wide range of social and economic benefits for the girls themselves, their children and their communities. These include near-elimination of child marriage, lowering fertility rates by a third in countries with high population growth, and reducing child mortality and malnutrition.
Over the past two decades many countries have reached universal primary education, and girls’ enrollment at the primary level in developing countries rivals that of boys. But this is not enough. Much larger benefits of education, as the analysis finds, would come from completing secondary school.
“If leaders are serious about building a better world, they need to start with serious investments in girls’ secondary education. This report is more proof that we cannot afford to delay investing in girls.” reads part of the report.
As part of the recommendation from the report to in order to reap the full benefits of education, countries need to improve both access and quality so that all girls have the opportunity to learn. These investments are especially crucial in some regions, such as Sub-Saharan Africa .
Further the report shows that women with secondary education have a better ability to make decisions in their household, including for their own health care. They are less likely to experience intimate partner violence, and they report higher levels of psychological well-being. They also have healthier children who are less likely to be malnourished and who are more likely to go to school and learn.
The report was published with support from the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation, the Global Partnership for Education, and Malala Fund.
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