“Basic education begins to unlock potential, but it is secondary education that provides the wings that allow girls to fly.” – Ziauddin YousafzaiCurrently, 65 million girls around the world are being denied basic education.
65 million girls who could be the next global leaders.
Education is the window of opportunity girls have to transform themselves, their families and their community. Education is critical in building a better future, improving health outcomes, and ending abuses such as human trafficking, gender-based violence, and child marriage.
Our HerTime Matters Initiative is empowering girls by providing sanitary products during her time of the month. Soon after we launched the Adolescent Girls Health Education classes in 2013 in the Afghanistan public schools surrounding Afshar hospital, our instructors realized that many girls had little to no access to basic sanitary products. This means that during a girl’s “time of the month”, coming to school is usually not possible. As a result, she gets behind in her studies. Girls in developing countries miss up to a quarter of their education because they do not have access to sanitary products.
Supporting education for girls is particularly important in Afghanistan the country with the highest rate of gender inequality in education. The number of girls receiving an elementary school education has grown significantly since 2002. However, only 36% of Afghan girls are enrolled in school and that percentage declines each year of secondary and high school.
Check out these videos that inspire us to help achieve a future where all girls are given an opportunity to learn and receive an education.