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“We are convinced that equal access to quality education is vital to achieving the empowerment and equal opportunity of girls and women, especially in developing contexts and countries struggling with conflict. Thus, we welcome approaches to address the barriers girls face and to achieve gender equality and, in particular, the Gender at the Center Initiative.” (The Declaration, G7 leaders, August 2019).
Girls and Boys Claim Their Right to a Quality Education
In low-income countries, less than two-thirds of girls complete primary education, and only one in three completes lower secondary schools. The Advisory Council’s report, the Biarritz Partnership, states that the inequality of opportunity is acute and that the G7 commitment to address this is critical.
The G7 leaders have recognized the urgency of ensuring that all girls and boys around the world are able to claim their right to quality education and called for transformational efforts to meet that goal as the route to a more gender-equal world.
Education ministries working alone can only do so much. Tackling such deep-seated norms as gender stereotypes, early or forced marriage and teenage pregnancy requires a holistic approach. The Gender at the Center Initiative will bring together the ministries working on gender issues (education, health and others) with key actors from other sectors and constituencies to address the social and cultural barriers that perpetuate gender inequality and keep girls out of school. Local communities and grassroots organizations, teachers’ organizations and civil society organizations will all have a crucial role in supporting the initiative and ensuring delivery of concrete results.
G7 leaders also committed to implementing progressive legislative frameworks for gender equality, with a focus on ensuring equitable and quality education and health, ending gender-based violence, promoting economic empowerment and ensuring full equality between women and men in public policies.
Lucubrate Magazine September 2019
The pictures for the article: Adobe Stock
The article is from an article in “The Global Partnership for Education”, published August 27th 2019 (https://www.globalpartnership.org/news-and-media/news/g7-leaders-pledge-support-new-gender-equality-initiative-education)
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