This International Day of the Girl, let’s help more girls stay in school

I, presumably like many other Canadian mothers, worry about my young daughter’s future. Gender inequality, the hyper-sexualization of girls and sexual abuse are just a few of my concerns. But one thing I thankfully don’t worry about — unlike perhaps mothers in other parts of the world — is that the pandemic will disrupt my daughter’s education forever.

She, along with other children across Canada, is back at school. Things may look different, but at least kids are learning and interacting with others again, whether it’s in person or virtually. However, a third of the world’s children — who are considered disadvantaged — do not have the support needed to learn remotely, according to data from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). That’s a problem, because as much of the world enters a second wave, more schools will likely be shutting down again or relying heavily on e-learning.

More alarmingly, in the long term, it’s girls who are expected to be disproportionately affected by this. In September, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) stated that 11 million girls are projected never to return to school, as they may be forced to take on caregiving and earning roles while staying at home. This, in turn, could widen the gender gap and lead to more girls being susceptible to forced marriage, sexual abuse and teen pregnancy.

Educating girls is the key to ending gender inequality and poverty globally, and more must be done to ensure that these predictions don’t come true. The non-profit I work for, Islamic Relief Canada, runs an international program in which orphans are sponsored under the condition that they stay in school and in their family homes until the age of 18. This has proven to be effective not only in helping girls complete their education but also avoid early marriages. Another program in the Philippines assists 600 school-age children through stipends to encourage them to go back to school and/or stay in school following a humanitarian crisis there in 2017 that displaced thousands.

Such strategies can help in countries in which in-person school is open, but there is also a need for shorter-term alternative programs to be put into place in countries where only virtual learning is available. Money raised could be used toward providing internet access, desks, laptops and learning materials, as well as supplementing family incomes so that girls don’t have to choose working over studying.

While in Canada the pandemic is unlikely to lead to severe longterm outcomes for disadvantaged girls such as forced marriages or child labour, it can still affect their education in the short term. One in five children and youth live in poverty according to UNICEF Canada, with one in 10 families without an internet connection at home. The lack of technological support in addition to other barriers, such as inadequate parental assistance or poor nutrition, can lead children to detach from their education.

Another challenge is that reports of child abuse — including sexual abuse — and sexual exploitation have risen dramatically across the country with more children staying at home, according to Kids Help Phone and the RCMP’S National Child Exploitation Crime Centre. As we know, when it comes to sexual abuse, girls are disproportionately affected, and their longterm mental health and well-being is at risk.

These problems were addressed to some extent during the first wave through the federal government’s one-time Canadian Emergency Student Benefit (CESB) and the Canadian Emergency Response Benefit (CERB); provincial programs to loan laptops with data plans to thousands of students; and $50 million in federal funding for women and children fleeing violence.

But the longer this pandemic drags on, the more businesses and jobs will be lost, and more vulnerable families — and girls — will likely need help to continue learning and stay safe. Additional financial support will be needed from the government, but from us individually as well. Wherever we can, let’s raise money or support programs that will create a better future for our girls.

At the end of the day, I think it’s fair to say — more so during the COVID-19 pandemic — that no matter where we live in the world, there’s still more to worry about when it comes to our daughters’ futures compared to our sons’. That has to change, and we have to be the ones to do it.

A third of the world’s children — who are considered disadvantaged — do not have the support needed to learn remotely, according to data from UNICEF