Girls’ education critical to development, Zambia tells UN

Zambia has sustained her campaign for improved girls’ education at the United Nations (UN) without which, sustainable social and economic development would remain elusive to nations across the globe particularly developing economies.

Christine Kalamwina, Zambia Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations says increased girls’ education remains a critical component in the promotion of gender equality and the economic empowerment of the female gender.

Ms Kalamwina has told the UN that in an effort to increase the enrolment of girls into schools, the Government in Zambia has prioritised the retention of girls in schools as a catalyst of making education universally accessible to girls.

She stated that Government in Zambia has subsequently enacted a law that has made it mandatory for schools to enroll children on an equal number of boys and girls at entry level in an effort to bridge up the education gender gap.

Ms Kalamwina said this when she addressed UN Member States on Agenda Item 29, Advancement of Women at the on-going 73rd United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York.
Agenda Item 29, Advancement of Women is the United Nations Secretary General’s Report of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women.

“Zambia recognizes that increasing girls’ access to education has a profound impact on the realization of their full potential including enhancing the status of their families. While gender parity has improved, barriers to girls’ education ranging from financial constraints to negative social and cultural norms continue to discourage girls from accessing education. Cases of girls dropping out of school at the onset of menstruation still persist partially due to lack of sanitary towels,” Ms Kalamwina said.

Ms Kalamwina said realising that the number of girls dropping out of school at the onset of menstruation in Zambia has been increasing, the Zambian Government has commenced the distribution of free sanitary towels in rural and peri-urban schools to ensure as many girls as boys remained in school.

She said in the spirit of empowering women, Zambia has been implementing the Agricultural Development through Value Chain Enhancement Project (ADVANCE), which aims at increasing agriculture production and agro products.

Ms Kalamwina stated that the implementation of the ADVANCE project has been a response to the African Union (AU) which is championing the relegation of the hoe to the archives and mechanise farming activities for women, a proramme which has seen cooperatives in chiefdoms receive 71 tractors and 94 tillers.

On climate change, Ms Kalamwina told the UN: “Government with the support from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has developed a gender responsive climate change Gender Action Plan (ccGAP). The integration of Gender into the ccGAP is critical because it will guarantee women’s equal access and participation in climate change activities.”