这方面女孩儿尤其弱势；据联合国教科文组织统计，在撒哈拉以南非洲地区，估计有900万11岁以下女童从未接受过学校教育，而从未上过学的男童仅有600万左右。
Girls are particularly disadvantaged; according to UNESCO, in Sub-Saharan Africa, an estimated nine million girls under the age of 11 have never been to school, compared to six million boys.