Not only is education of paramount importance in reinvigorating the full potential of every child, but it also helps promote understanding, respect, fraternity and coexistence among ordinary citizens the majority of course, political leader, elites, religious heads and the like.
Without a shadow of doubt, education provides stability for today and opportunities for tomorrow as far as children are concerned, especially for girls.
Beyond the immediate effects on Ethiopia’s development, promoting girls’ education can lead to women becoming more active participants in their communities, having a greater say in important decisions, and finding sustainable solutions to other causes of poverty and other potential perplexities. In simple terms, it is not just a girl/women or her immediate family that benefits out of her quality education as educating girls has pay off triple girls themselves, the society from where they are drawn and the country in which they were born.
Having a stay with Almaz Berhane, a mother of three, all are females, this writer had an opportunity to jot down decisive points regarding the significance of girls’ education for the comprehensive development of a nation.
She said, “Educating girls is not only a progress of their future, but it is an investment in the future of the generation, who will take over the country with its future as well as make the country a thriving, peaceful, independent, stable and affluent one.”
According to Almaz, education for any child can open the doors to a brighter future that would otherwise be locked tight. When girls have access to education, they develop the knowledge, confidence and life skills necessary to navigate and adapt to an ever-changing realm.
Almaz has urged the people, government and others concerned bodies putting clear manifestations of the importance of girls’ education by mentioning her own experience and life episodes.
She further elucidated that educating girls does have triple significances and even more if it managed accordingly, well focused and scrupulously eyed at. “I carefully raised and educated all my three girls and they are now leading life properly, one at home and the remaining two reside abroad. From my own experience, I can easily deduce that educating girls or women help change their own life, the living way of the community and fosters the overall development progress of the country.”
Summarizing the core ideas from what Almaz was talking about at length, this piece synopsized and portrayed in genres regarding the impact of girls’ education.
Own life
Education for girls helps them achieve their individual potential, enables them pass informed decisions instead of being submissive in any case whatever comes across them and dependent on others’ socio-economic strata. Educated girls/women can confidently communicate ideas, come up with convincing justifications and liken themselves with their male counterparts.
When girls stay in school, they increase their income earning potential and their future is immediately brighter as education empowers a woman to build a better life for herself, contributing to the health, safety and prosperity of her family and community as well.
True, girl’s education changes everything since a woman all the time drives a comprehensive social, economic and political wheel well if properly managed and women incorporated. An educated girl is more likely to grow up healthy, safe and empowered to determine the course of her life and future. She will decide when she is ready for marriage and have children. Besides, she will likely send her children to school and help them improve life.
Social worth
Parents and community leaders may not evidently see the value in educating girls reflecting the two non-rewarding beliefs: the primary role of women in life is being a wife and mother and many families and cultures tend to favor education for boys at the expense girls. Undeniably, women can more effectively teach their own children, which will help lift an entire generation from the underdevelopment quagmire. When we educate girls, we give them the chance to step up and realize their fullest leadership potential. Without access to education, girls are denied the opportunity to learn the skills that enable them to take charge not only in their own homes, careers and lives but also in their community and their country at larger scale.
Educating girls helps break intergenerational cycles of poverty, and disadvantages as the society can draw important lessons from the disciplined, civic minded and productive segments of the community, girls and women.
Economic dependence on men, lack of participation in public spheres such as local governance structures and the labor market, physical and sexual violence as well as socio-cultural inappropriate role of women all intersect to systematically deny women and girls equal rights and getting them devoid of the most chance of transforming their power and self-determination.
No matter who everyone is, or where they live across the planet earth, people have a fundamental human right to education. Hence, girl’s education is something all people have truly emphasized upon. Realizing the importance of girls’ education would keep the society motivated towards ensuring lives full of dreams and ambitions. With the general society relentless assistance, the country inches closer towards attaining its goal of accessibility of education for all and educating every child. It is important to increase public awareness of the value of girls’ education to strengthen the girl child’s self-image, self-esteem and social status. There are now a growing number of materials dealing with the issues of girls. They need to be synthesized, processed, consolidated and repackaged to bring them to the attention of the population educators, policy-makers, administrators, curriculum developers, trainers, teachers, and other students. The society has to focus on girls’ education, indeed.
It is also vital to increase awareness of how population educators can contribute to the elimination of stereotyping and discrimination of girls and promote appreciation of the value of the girls/women. Investing in girls’ education, transforms the entire community. As girls who receive an education are less likely to marry at their young and more likely to lead healthy, productive lives, the society should do all their best to well contribute their share to the national effort exerted towards empowering women and girls for their bright future. Communal role matters the most.
National merits
Despite significant gains and improvements recently witnessed, education outcomes for girls in developing countries like Ethiopia continue lagging behind. A number of girls in Ethiopia mark time of extreme vulnerability such as child marriage, teenage pregnancy, sexual violence, nutritional deficiency and exposure to HIV/AIDS and other contagious as well as sexually transmitted disorders. Achieving gender equality through education is the ambition and route to a more gender-just country, region, continent and world, where every girl and boy can reach their full potential in life.
Yes, educating girls is of significantly useful in helping the country attain its fundamental goals as women/girls have been contributing a lot to the effort geared towards shaping the generation and make them much more productive. So the saying goes, “Educating girls is educating the society,” the country has to well capitalize on their education. Despite the presence of more girls in the classrooms, millions of girls in Ethiopia continue facing discrimination, violence, neglect, exploitation and abuse. If the country is to properly reap the fruits of education it deserves, it has to attach due emphasis to girls’ education. Undeniably, educating girls strengthens economy and reduces inequality as it is potential in contributing to a more stable, resilient societies as well as all-encompassing and affluent nation.
Generally, educating girls is about more than access to school as it incorporates girls feeling safe in classrooms and supported in the subjects and careers they choose and highly prefer to enjoy joining.
BY MENGESHA AMARE
THE ETHIOPIAN HERALD THURSDAY 20 JANUARY 2022
