Why is education for females so important?

Sofia Butshilo Dube is from Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. She’s currently studying a BA in Humanities at the University of Johannesburg in South Africa. She a writer and owner of a small media company called Luzibo

Why is education for females important? Women’s rights have been the world’s major topics since the 19th century. There are some nations that still deny women simple basic human rights for example the right to life through the rise of Gender-based violence on women and children and the right to education. Some of these issues such as violence or abuse, hunger, immortality rates, teenage pregnancies, etc can be avoided by educating women. Education can help women: 

● Understand their human rights 

By women knowing their human rights they know what is at stake. Women will suffer less from abusive relationships especially relationships that will affect their children and their children’s lives tomorrow. It is well known that children in abusive households become abusive in the future or they become drug abusers. So by women knowing their rights and that it is safer for them to be out of such relationships they can better the lives of their children and their own future. 

● Reduce Infant and mother mortality rates 

By educating women this helps them actually start having families late in life pushing back the age of having their first child. Women past the age of 18 years are more likely to survive childbirth. The Center for Global Development estimates that up to 18 million lives could be saved just by educating women in developing countries. Educated women know how to provide good nutrition for their children and the importance of sanitation and medical care for their infants therefore reducing the infant mortality rate. Educated women will promote better health for their children and will know the importance of vaccinating their own children. 

● Able to promote good health 

They can teach the community on sanitation and practices of safe sex. Women can reduce the spread of HIV and AIDS

 ● Develop their identities 

Failure to educate women usually leads to isolating them. The only jobs they then do is domestic work where they spent 33 to 85% of their time without going to the outside world. Most of the time they are looked down upon in this job and mistreated by employees leading them into depression. By educating women it will help enhance their identities and so become respected members of the community. 

● Reduce child marriages 

Child marriages have been the biggest problem in the world and most child marriages lead to teenage pregnancies and rise in mortality rates. By educating them women will want to marry at a later stage and have children at the right time. According to the UN if women in sub-saharan Africa and South and West Asia completed their Secondary Education child marriages with drop by 64% within a space of five years. 

Pursue education for their own children 

Educated women would want their children to be educated to levels that are even better than themselves. They will want their children to pursue higher education and have better jobs and better lives. 

Provide for themselves and their children 

Educated women can get have good employment prospects that will allow them to provide good lives for themselves and their children. In South Africa there are so many single mothers and by them being educated they are able to send their children to school and provide them with proper livelihoods. 

End genital mutilation 

More than 140 million women in the world are affected by genital mutilation. Genital mutilation is a cruel method of severing parts of the woman’s private parts leaving women severely mutilated. Most women especially in Kenya and other less developed countries who are not educated don’t know that the practice is a health hazard. That is why it is still supported by many cultures even today. Genital mutilation deforms the vagina of a woman leaving her like that for the rest of her life. Many women in these countries have died from genital mutilation that went wrong. 

Educating a woman can lead to the betterment of their future because women hold the future in their hands by virtue of them being child bearers.

Showing 2 comments
  • Mlungis

    Awesome …… thank you educating our sisters

  • africaneuropean

    Thank you for your support Kill – You can now find subscribe to our newsletter on our front page.

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