Transcriber: Palmer Silva Reviewer: Hani Eldalees
I don't mind if I have to sit on the floor at school.
All I want is education. And I’m afraid of no one.
These were some of the wise words of Malala Yousaf zai,
a renowned Pakistani activist for female education.
One of the key obstacles women face is a lack of education. In many countries.
Education is only granted to men denying women the right to knowledge
and leaving them in the continuing cycle of mistreatment, violence and poverty.
What if we all had this great amount of passion for education?
What would it feel like to truly want something that we already have access to
something so simple, yet so powerful? Education.
Now, imagine yourselves in the shoes of someone such as Malala being targeted
and shot just because you were advocating for female education in your area.
I know that I will not be standing on
the stage speaking about this topic out of fear for my life and safety.
Many of us would have been illiterate if we were young women living within
Afghanistan. UNICEF has stated that around the world,
a total of one hundred and thirty two million girls are out of school.
These numbers and statistics should not be ignored.
They shouldn't just be seen as another number or a statistic.
We cannot keep turning a blind eye towards women
and young girls not having access to education.
As it plays a great role in our lives.
I can vividly recall a time from my childhood when my grandmother in Iran
spoke to me about how she was forced to drop out of school due to the social
and political issues which were occurring in her country during her time.
Instead, she received schooling from home,
but later dropped her studies altogether at a very young age.
It has been discovered through extensive research that there is
a positive correlation between gender equality and the amount of economic
and social development of a country.
It has been acknowledged by many governments
and organizations that by reducing gender inequalities,
we could be combating much bigger issues such as poverty.
Some studies have found that as a result of achieving gender equality for
the education of women and young girls,
there will be an enhancement of productivity and economic growth.
Additionally, women obtaining knowledge in health has aided in decreasing infant
mortality rates. Children who are born to educated mothers are 50 percent more
likely to survive past the age of five.
The global increase in women's education has prevented more than four million
child deaths. Some countries end up losing more than one billion dollars
yearly by failing to educate girls on the same level as they educate boys.
Luckily, we’re seeing a positive change between the years 2000
and 2018, the number of out of school schoolgirls fell from
57 million to 32 million.
These positive outcomes aid in improving the quality of life for women
and young girls everywhere.
As we move into a post pandemic world,
we should continue these positive efforts to promote the education of women
and young girls all around the world.
The long term goal of reducing poverty
and overpopulation will be impossible until we free women around the world from
the enslavement of ignorance.
More fundamental is that education is a basic human right,
which has systematically been denied to many women for too long.
As Malala once said, every girl, no matter where she lives,
no matter her circumstance, has the right to learn.