On
October 9, 2012, a gunman boarded a school bus in northern Pakistan and fired
three bullets into 15-year-old Malala Yousafzai’s face.
On
December 16, 2012, six men raped, tortured and murdered 23-year-old medical
student Jyoti Singh on a local bus in New Delhi.
On April
14, 2014, a group of militant vigilantes in northern Nigeria kidnapped and
enslaved more than 200 schoolgirls, snatching the girls as they studied in
their classrooms.
Ms.
Yousafzai had been so bold as to demand an education, Ms. Singh too foolish to
walk the streets unafraid and the schoolgirls, too empowered in their pursuit
of education.
Today, as
the United Nations marks World Population Day, the strength and tribulations of
these young girls and women highlight the power and importance of this year’s
message: Invest in teenage girls for a more stable and peaceful world.
“When a
teenage girl has the power, the means and the information to make her own
decisions in life, she is more likely to overcome obstacles that stand between
her and a healthy, productive future. This will benefit her, her family and her
community,” said Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin, executive director of The United
Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), in a statement on World Population Day.
“When she
has no say in decisions about her education, health, work or even marital
status, she may never realize her full potential or become a positive force for
transformation in her home, community and nation.”
In other
words, educating girls remains the most powerful and effective way to address
poverty around the world.
Globally,
781 million adults are illiterate – two thirds of whom are women. In Cambodia,
almost 50 percent of young girls are laborers instead of students, according to
literacy and gender-equality focused NGO Room to Read.
A shift
is necessary to educate countries and economies around the world that an
investment in girls is an investment in the future.
“Governments
everywhere need to invest in teenage girls in ways that empower them to make
important life decisions and equip them to one day earn a living, engage in the
affairs of their communities and be on an equal footing with their male
counterparts,” the UNFPA’s statement read.
As it
stands now, cultural and religious barriers and factors like gender-based
violence, lack of menstrual hygiene – causing female students to drop out of
school – and lack of access to modern contraception can obstruct a woman’s path
to empowerment.
The UNFPA
estimates that one third of girls in developing countries are married by the
age of 18 – and for many young brides, marriage marks the end of education.
What’s
more, the UNFPA approximates that annually, 800 girls and women die around the
world each day from preventable pregnancy and child-birth related causes. These
are women without access to proper healthcare and family planning services and
who lack adequate education.
“In some
parts of the world, a girl who reaches puberty is deemed by her family or
community as ready for marriage, pregnancy and childbirth. She may be married
off and forced to leave school. She may suffer a debilitating condition, such
as fistula, from delivering a child before her body is ready for it. She may be
denied her human rights,” said Dr. Osotimehin.
In a
world where women who seek education and empowerment are threatened with
violence, it is vital that governments ensure all of its citizens have the
right to determine their own futures. This World Population Day the UNFPA’s
message is clear: if women attain their full potential, generations thrive and
societies prosper.
Safiya
Charles
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