Aid for girls’ education

SIR – The Prime Minister’s announcement at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting that £212million of British aid will go towards keeping girls in school could not have come soon enough.

Progress towards tackling inequality in schools has stalled: 130 million girls across the world are missing out on education, and 60 million aren’t even making it to primary school. Despite the fact that educated girls earn more, reduce poverty in their communities, raise healthier children and make their countries safer and more prosperous, inequality is rife.

Poverty is a key driver here, but so too are the challenges of school violence, child marriage and early pregnancy. We now have a much better idea than we did a decade ago of what works to improve education for girls, so the momentum must continue, and girls’ rights must stay firmly on the agenda. Tanya Barron

CEO, Plan International UK London EC1