By Helena Selby
From the beginning of time, when men were the masters of everything, including women, who would have thought that women, one day, will be given the opportunity to become heads of certain important organizations, including countries.
Who would have thought that women would be given the opportunity, to take part in certain important decisions concerning the society, or the home? One might wonder why the sudden change of decision, could it be the existence of modern-day education. The answer might be positive, but the question is, how come many women have not gotten the opportunity to undergo this form of education.
“If you educate a man, you educate an individual, but if you educate a woman, you educate a whole nation.” This was a statement made by Dr. James Emmanuel Kwegyir Aggrey, on how important girl-child education really is. Due to his immense concern for education for girls in Africa, he was sometimes called the Father of African Education. He being an intellectual, a teacher and a missionary at that time, gave him the opportunity to send across easily, his message about the importance of girl-child education.
Gender disparities in education
It is amazing that women, who are able to speak right through the hearts of people, more often, are deprived of the chance to education, though they can be said to be the most influential gender in the world. All that they were labeled to be good at was the bearing of children.
In many parts of the world, girls are denied the chance of going to school, in view of the fact that society has the notion that it is better to take the boy-child to school. This is because the boy-child might be considered to be the heir of his family’s fortune, going to get married and take care of a family or maybe the bread winner if the father is no more. For the girl-child, owing to the fact that a man would ask for her hand in marriage one day, there was no need for her to go to school. Moreover, she is supposed to be taken care of by her husband, and even if things get tough with the husband, she can go to the market and sell, for the survival of her family.
According to a research, conducted by the Commission for Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) in Ghana, the Nkwanta districts of Ghana have 76% of their population living in the rural areas, school attendance is poor, and there are twice as many boys in basic education, as girls. Many girls in the Nkwanta districts do not complete their education.
From 2002 to 2003 girls enrolment has been higher than that of boys, and this shows that there is a growing awareness to send girls to school.
In most developing countries, gender disparities become more glaring, when girls enter high school and go to university. Two-thirds of the world’s illiterate population is made up of women. The illiteracy rate among women in the Nkwanta Districts is 77%, with the national illiteracy rate, 42.1%.
According to UNICEF, world statistics show gender disparities at primary school level, with lower enrolment and retention rates, and higher school dropout rates. The gender gap in secondary school is larger, with girls lagging behind boys by 16%, as at 2003.
Women and education
Education has now gone a long way to spread the news on how essential it is to send the female child to school. It has even gone to the extent of influencing leaders, in taking relevant decisions about women, as to how they have the same opportunity as that of men.
The Beijing Conference, in September 1996, concerning the rights of women, changed the perceptions of many people, about the role of women in society. This conference brought about a slogan, which goes, “What men can do, women can also do, and do it even better.”
As a result of this, women are being given the respect they deserve, and not being underrated anymore, during social gatherings.
Women now hold prominent positions in the world.
In Liberia - Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, India – Pratibha Patil, Chile - Michelle Bachelet and Philippines - Gloria Arroya, are all women of power and fame, appointed by their people to lead them.
In Ghana, many women are being appointed to significant positions in the government. Ms. Gloria Akuffo - Deputy Minister for Aviation, Ms. Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey - Member of Parliament for the Weija constituency and Deputy Minister for Trade, Industry, PSD and PSI, and Justice Theodora Georgina Wood - Chief Justice.
There is the need for us to remember the legendary woman of the Ashantis, Yaa Asantewa, the queenmother, who led her people to war, to fight for their rights and freedom, during the colonial era.
Why girls are sometimes denied education
Apart from the female gender being discriminated upon, whenever a family finds itself in extreme poverty, the privilege of undergoing education normally goes to the males. This is due to the perception that the male, having a strong nature, can go through the vagaries of life, to obtain a job after his education, and take care of the family. The female on the other hand, with her fragile nature might grow weary along the way. Additionally, it will be a waste of time if after she gets married and gives birth, would stay at home to take care of the children and home, thereby making investment in her education useless.
The death of parents can also render a girl-child hopeless, in terms of undergoing education.
Evelyn Adubea, the only child of her parents, gave up her dream of becoming an accountant, when her parents died in a car accident, almost 13 years ago. She lived in Osino, a town in the Eastern Region of Ghana, with her parents.
According to her, because she was the only child of her parents, they gave her anything possible, to enable her have the joy and desire of going to school.
After the death of her parents, she was sent to Accra to live with an Auntie.
Her auntie did not give her the opportunity of continuing her education, all she could do was observe her cousins (Auntie’s children) go to school everyday.
For almost 13 years, of her stay with her auntie, all she did is to cry, whenever she recollected that her dreams of being an accountant had being ruined.
She is now a hairdresser, though she never dreamt working in that profession, and according to her, she is very glad she is able to do the work well.
Why the education of women?
Dr. Kwegyir Aggrey was right about the notion he had on the importance of education for the girl-child. A mother with an educational background tends to inculcate the benefits and knowledge she has into her children. She tries her best to give her children a better life, so that they could do better in life, by taking them through education.
Education will help them make their own choices, make their own decisions, and also be very independent.
The vicious cycle of poverty, coupled with the low standard of living among families, will be gradually broken and eradicated, if a woman is properly educated.
A woman with a good educational background, will have little problem taking care of her children, in times of the untimely death of her husband, especially an intestate death or in the case of divorce.
Her educational background would enable her get a job, to take care of children, and as well, take them through school.
Unlike the illiterate, who due to the fact that she has been divorced, widowed or inheritance denied, does not realize the benefit of sacrificing, for her children to acquire an education.
The cycle of poverty might, in the long round, compel children to engage in all sorts of social vices, since they do not have any future career to concentrate on.
The result is social unrest, which has the possibility of driving away potential investors, who have the ability of creating jobs for the nation.
Prostitution, from the same ignorance, has the ability of increasing the rate of HIV/AIDS cases among the youth.
Imagine a generation full of wayward youth and HIV/AIDS patients, how then will the future generations be like.
The education of females can help eradicate certain outmoded and inhumane customs and traditions, like child marriage and female genital mutilation (FGM).
Educated women will educate women and the community on the dangers associated with the various cultural practices, especially FGM, and widowhood rites.
Conclusion
Education is a good thing, though its effect sometimes is adverse, in terms of modernity, but its benefits outweighs the adverse, in the sense that it has been able to expand the horizon of the world’s development.
It will be of great help to the world, if the statement made by Dr. Kwegyir Aggrey is being adhered to, so as to encourage women to partake in the world’s development.
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