Educating Girls

Compiled by CARITAS For Children Staff

Across the globe, women still struggle for equitable treatment in the workplace. In their daily lives many women are repeatedly subjected to violence and oppression. On Sunday, May 3, 2015, the Nigerian military freed 300 women and children from the Boko Haram camps deep in the Sambisa Forest. Even as the troops approached, the Boko Haram militants stoned the women they had held captive for more than six months. The 219 Chibok school girls whose plight became known to the world when they were kidnapped by Boko Haram were not among those rescued.

Educated girls are viewed as a threat, because education is the very tool that empowers them to become leaders and make changes for the better within their communities. When women are viewed as partners rather than subservient, however; the entire culture benefits.

Some of the girls in CARITAS For Children's child sponsorship programs.

CARITAS For Children recognizes the importance of educating "the girl child". Educating girls is not only a right to which they are entitled, but it greatly improves their quality of life and often the lives of their families.

According to the Center for Global Development, only one in three children who attend school in Sub-Saharan Africa finish primary school, and the fortunate girls who attend school benefit in a variety of ways:

Girls who complete their primary education are half as likely to contract HIV/AIDS as those who don't.In many countries, each additional year of schooling results in 10% higher wages.Educated mothers are far more likely to immunize their children than uneducated mothers.Educated women are more likely to seek medical care during and after pregnancy and childbirth, resulting in less maternal and infant deaths and improved health.

CARITAS For Children's child sponsorship programs in Africa originated at Stella Maris Primary Boarding School. The mission statement of this school is, "To Equip the Children with Quality Education & Basic Practical Skills for Self Reliance." CARITAS For Children's child sponsorship programs enroll girls at Stella Maris, confident that they will emerge as kind, caring, and capable young women.

school building with mission statement display

The mission statement of St. Alphonsus Demonstration School in Nkokonjeru.

Many of the children in CARITAS' Day School child sponsorship programs attend St. Alphonsus Demonstration School. This co-educational school, has this as its mission statement: "To aid the development of pupils mentally, physically, socially, spiritually, and emotionally, most especially the girl child." Some of CARITAS For Children's earliest sponsors are seeing the impact their support has made on their sponsored children. The boys and girls they have supported with care and love for years are reaching the end of their secondary education and moving on to University or Technical Institutions, or starting careers and families. One girl will be studying medicine, another veterinary medicine, many are hoping to attend nursing school. One boy is already training as an electrician. Some are studying cosmetology, which often requires a two year course to learn hair and beading techniques much in demand. The intention that echoes among these young people is the desire to give back and help others.

Click here to see girls and boys available for sponsorship.

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CaritasForChildren on Sep 18, 2015

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