Sunday, August 23, 2009

Investing in Education for Girls in Africa


Recent studies show the great potential for providing an untapped force, women, to help poor nations progress. Developing countries in Africa are not giving girls equal access to education, technology, employment and politics. Lisa MacCallum, the managing director of Nike Foundation, explains that investing in girls’ education is cost-effective because, “If you don’t get to girls by age 12, you are investing in the cure, not the prevention.”

The Woman Hold Up Half the Sky report from Goldman Sachs in South Africa details how education of girls increases wages of the employed, results in less child mortality, HIV infection and other diseases. These benefits would help move the continent to a more productive growth pattern.
--Jessica Milstead

Source: innovationafrica.org