Improve Girls' Education in Malawi!
In Malawi, girls get very bad educations. How can we help?
Maya R.
Girls' Education At Its Worst
In Malawi, there are many barriers to girls’ education. One of them is early marriage. In Malawi, traditions and the weak economy cause girls to drop out of school to marry early. Once they get married, they have many children at a very young age. More than a quarter of all girls in Malawi have given birth at least once by the age of nineteen, which causes many health and social problems. There is also a high rate of HIV in Malawi.
Most girls in Malawi also have special chores that make them have to leave school, such as taking care of children that are not even always their own. Many girls also face hunger--sometimes it’s simply too hard to walk all the way to school. Most of them only get one meal a day, which is usually dinner. When they go to school, they have to walk there, be in class for five hours, and then walk home- all without eating any food at all. These girls have a very hard time staying in school because of all of these reasons, but the amazing thing is, all of these problems could be solved if we all did even just a little to help them.
What are the consequences of girls in Malawi missing their educations?
Letting girls miss so much school, believe it or not, is very bad for everyone in their community. First of all, girls miss their chances of becoming leaders. And who knows, maybe one of those girls who missed their education could have grown up to save her people. But none of these girls could ever be an important leader, all because they didn't get a chance to go to school. Secondly, many of these girls who never go to school are more vulnerable to child marriage, as well as early pregnancy, which makes everyone in their community less healthy because of illnesses that stay in the air after early pregnancies. All of this makes these girls, and their communities, have a very hard time with health and leadership.
Who is helping the girls in Malawi, and how is it working?
Organizations like World Vision have partnered with some concerned community members to find role models for these girls, encourage them not to marry early, and to tell them to continue their education for as long a time as possible. Other organizations like UNICEF, UNFPA, UNDP, and WFP made programs to go straight to the girls to improve the quality of the lessons, help girls who are abused, and giving schools proper food. These methods are very helpful and have made a big difference in the lives of girls from Malawi.