Cindy Liang, Research Fellow
Ishva Mehta, Executive Director
Across the world, global literacy rates are a prominent issue, however, illiteracy hits women the hardest. According to UNESCO, only 39% of countries have equal proportions of male and female school children enrolled in secondary education. Furthermore, over half of the children out of school across the world are female. Overall the youth illiteracy rates are stagnant, but female literacy rates lag further behind.
However, once literate, women face even more obstacles surrounding education. According to UNESCO, only 29% of the world’s researchers are women; they are often underrepresented in scientific and technical fields. By improving global literacy rates for women, the bias and discrimination they face in education can decrease.
Female illiteracy is an urgent issue that must be internationally addressed in order to increase economic development and freedom in areas with low female literacy. Most areas with high low-income rates also have low female literacy rates.
Educating young women would yield to a number of benefits, not only for women but for society in general:Economic Growth: A growing class of literate women increases productivity and generates more economic revenue for the country. Greater employment means more resources, raising GDP. According to an Education Commission Report, 1 dollar invested in an additional year of education for girls results in earnings and health benefits equal to $10 in low-income countries and $4 in lower to middle income countries. Holding women back in education and careers not only severely limits their own independence, but creates an inefficient economy.
Greater Income Equality: Not reinforcing female literacy results in less job options for women, which also creates a growing income gap between men and women. Across the world, countries are losing $160 trillion because of differences in lifetime earnings among gender. This is an average of $23,620 for each person in the 141 countries.
Healthier Children: Children born to a literate mother are more likely to survive. Literate mothers are usually part of the workforce; their households generate a greater income and better living conditions. In general, children with mothers who can read are 50% more likely to live past the age of 5, according to UNESCO. Additionally, an extra year of schooling for the mother reduces infant mortality by 5-10%. Female literacy also increases awareness of fatal diseases. According to Plan International UK, literate women are three times more likely than illiterate women to know that a seemingly healthy person can be infected with HIV, and four times as likely to know how to properly protect themselves from it. Increased disease awareness results in better health treatment, which makes for healthier children.
Greater Income Equality: Not reinforcing female literacy results in less job options for women, which also creates a growing income gap between men and women. Across the world, countries are losing $160 trillion because of differences in lifetime earnings among gender. This is an average of $23,620 for each person in the 141 countries.
Healthier Children: Children born to a literate mother are more likely to survive. Literate mothers are usually part of the workforce; their households generate a greater income and better living conditions. In general, children with mothers who can read are 50% more likely to live past the age of 5, according to UNESCO. Additionally, an extra year of schooling for the mother reduces infant mortality by 5-10%. Female literacy also increases awareness of fatal diseases. According to Plan International UK, literate women are three times more likely than illiterate women to know that a seemingly healthy person can be infected with HIV, and four times as likely to know how to properly protect themselves from it. Increased disease awareness results in better health treatment, which makes for healthier children.
Female illiteracy not only negative impacts women by limiting their freedom and opportunities, but also proves to be detrimental for a larger society’s progress economically, culturally, and politically.
Sources:
http://www.education-transforms.org/en/?portfolio=test-a-matter-of-life-and- death#.UxSoGPldWSo
https://report.educationcommission.org/report/
https://www.prb.org/empoweringwomendevelopingsocietyfemaleeducationi nthemiddleeastandnorthafrica/
https://www.unwomen.org/en/what-we-do/leadership-and-political-participation
https://plan-uk.org/blogs/the-importance-of-education-how-literacy-improves-lives