ict. Girls in school are less likely to face exploitation and abuse, and schools provide spaces where trained adults can help them heal.
If they are attending classes, girls are less likely to be forced to marry early. Education helps them chart a path out of crisis and into a more healthy adulthood. Consider that for every additional year of school, a girl will increase her lifetime earnings by 10 percent, and significantly decrease the infant mortality risk for her children.
The grim reality of living in a conflict zone is that girls’ access to education is severely restricted. Parents fear for their daughters’ safety, both while traveling to school and in the classroom, and so they often keep girls at home.
As families struggle to get by financially, girls are also pulled out of school to help care for siblings or to work for extra income. Schools can be overcrowded or non-existent for refugee children — the very situation Hanan faced.
I’ve seen how it’s possible for education to help overcome these challenges, in Kenya’s Dadaab refugee camp and at rebuilt schools in Haiti and Afghanistan. Although the international community’s support has not kept pace with the magnitude of the Syrian refugee crisis, host communities and humanitarian groups are partnering to help some out-of-school girls beat the odds and enter the classroom.
I’m happy to report that Hanan is one of them. Through a CARE visit, a community member learned about her situation and was able to intervene. By the time I reached Jordan and met her family, Hanan and one of her brothers were enrolled in school. She eagerly showed me her schoolbooks and told me all about her favorite subject: math.
A schoolgirl’s smile and laughter spoke volumes — Hanan’s family, desperate for hope, had recovered a critical piece of their daughter’s future.
As we commemorate the International Day of the Girl, let’s do more than make promises. Let’s ensure that girls like Hanan have access to an education, are able to stay in school, and gain the skills they need to flourish for generations to come.
Dr. Helene D. Gayle is president and CEO of CARE, an organization dedicated to fighting poverty. To learn more about innovative solutions that help girls overcome barriers to education, check out www.care.org.