Let’s make every girl come back when schools reopen

Notice of Monday, December 21, 2020

Journalist: Cosmos Akorli

12/21/2020

Girls’ education is a deliberate development priority that has helped lift households, communities and countries out of poverty.

In the developed world, girls have a supportive learning environment that allows them to complete their education with the knowledge to access the best opportunities. However, the same cannot be said of the developing world where many girls drop out of school very early. According to UNICEF, millions of girls are not attending lower levels of education in developing countries.

In Ghana, poverty is one of the main reasons for a parent’s inability to successfully send a girl to school. The Covid-19 epidemic has worsened poverty and the effect is already being felt in Ghana. Once a girl drops out of school, she becomes vulnerable to teenage pregnancy and child marriage.

It is sad to report, therefore, that according to the World Bank, Ghanaian dropout girls are among the more than 41,000 girls under the age of 18 who marry every day around the world. The situation has been exacerbated by the school closings induced by Covid-19, and does not portend Ghana’s progress towards achieving inclusive and equitable quality education in accordance with SDG # 4.

Covid-19 presents unprecedented challenges for girls’ education in Ghana
In Ghana, young schoolgirls have been at home for almost a year due to partial school closures caused by Covid-19. The findings of the Association of African Women Lawyers (AWLA) in Techiman and Kintampo districts in the Bono Est region as part of its intervention on gender-based violence against girls supported by Oxfam and the European Union reveal that everything does not go well.

There is evidence of an unprecedented increase in teenage pregnancies, child marriage and other forms of abuse against girls. Many girls at the elementary school level are pregnant while many more have been married. Some parents have also put their daughters in learning programs such as hairdressing and tailoring in the face of the uncertainties presented by the pandemic.

These are happening on the blind side of school authorities and teachers. This is supported by the findings of NGOs in other parts of Ghana. The future of several other girls could also be at risk, with Ghana being the loser if stakeholders do not resolve to contain this threat.

The situation is very alarming, especially because, according to World Bank projections, unless stakeholders take concerted action to protect schoolgirls during Covid-19 school closures, nearly 20 percent of schoolgirls developing countries may not return to school when schools reopen. But what can stakeholders do to ensure that all girls return to school when schools reopen in early 2021?

Getting all girls back to school: recommendations from stakeholders
It is very likely that a good number of girls at the elementary school level will not return to school due to the increase in teenage pregnancy and child marriage.

Stakeholders in Kintampo and Techiman Districts call for increased awareness on sexual violence during Covid-19; home visits to check on girls when schools reopen; and support for pregnant girls to return to school if possible, or after having had a baby.

Relevant structures in the provision of education: education directorates through circuit supervisors, girls’ coordinators, guidance and counseling coordinators, school directors, teachers and other stakeholders should be supported to visit the homes of any girl who does not show up for school within a week of reopening.

This will help determine the reason and what action to take. Adopting these and other relevant measures will reduce the negative impact of Covid-19 on girls’ education and Ghana’s progress towards an inclusive society.