Killmurray 1

Erin Killmurray

Dr. Erin Dietel-McLaughlin

First Year Composition

22 March 2011

Women’s Need for Education in Developing Nations

Mwangala Mukelabai lives in a rural area of Zambia. When she was only fifteen she lost

her father. Soon after her family’s property was stolen and destroyed, leaving them with nothing.

Mwangala’s barely literate mother was left to take care of Mwangala and her five siblings on her

own. At that point her future appeared to be filled with struggle and, improvement seemed

hopeless (Camfed USA). Around the world many people, like Mwangala, live in extreme

poverty under conditions most of us could never imagine. Organizations and governments from

all over the globe spend money and resources to try to improve the conditions of these

underdeveloped nations. This includes improving infrastructure, providing medication and

medical care, and sending food and other necessities. Deciding how to best use the available

resources to improve the economies of these countries is a constant debate. Not only do these

groups want to help the people with immediate survival, they also want to make a long term

improvement. One group in underdeveloped countries has a special need for aid. Women often

suffer the worst of these conditions. In addition to the diseases and poverty men face, they have

to live through less economic stability, dependence on men, reproductive diseases and

consequences, and a greater lack of human rights.

Education is one of the greatest problems in these countries. For example in some

countries in the Middle East less than forty percent of children receive a primary education
(Iqbal 35). Many developing nations have similar or even worse statistics. In developing

countries women’s education is far behind men’s (King and Hill 1). Females are among the most

likely not to be educated (Iqbal 35). Of the children worldwide that are not enrolled in schools,

two-thirds are girls (Women at a Glance). Literacy rates are also consistently lower for

women around the world (King and Hill 2). This discrepancy can also be seen through the adults

of these countries. Two-thirds of the world’s illiterate adults are female (Women at a

Glance). Additionally the gender gap is larger among the lower class, those most in need of

help, than the middle class (King and Hill 7). The lack of education is not the only problem

lowering women’s opportunity for improvement. The Fourth World Conference for Women

stated that violence against women is an additional obstacle to their advancement (Critelli 136).

These other hinderances can also be helped through education. Because they are often the most

untapped resource in their countries, giving women better access to traditional, political and

reproductive education is the best way to not only better their lives but to improve the economy

of the nation as a whole.

The most basic need for young girls is a primary education. Though there is often

problems for many kids to get an education in developing countries, girls are even less likely to

attend primary school than boys (Iqbal 35) and drop out at a much higher rate (Smith 65). This is

due to a lack of expectation for girls to learn as well as the harassment they often face in school

(Smith 67). Though enrollment rates have been increasing consistently over the past half century,

the gap between male and female enrollment has not improved (King and Hill 2). Primary school

is incredibly important because this is where young girls learn to read. Literacy is one of the

most basic necessities in achieving economic improvement. Poverty rates are highest for those

who are illiterate (Iqbal 36). Basic education greatly improves the lives of young women. For
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example in Africa, an educated girl is three times less like to get HIV/AIDS and will receive 25

percent more income. They also will have a smaller and healthier family (Camfed USA).

Primary school is also necessary for girls to obtain secondary or any other higher education.

Secondary school as well as higher education and trade schools greatly improve the

economic conditions for women. These skills and degrees allow women to obtain jobs that now

many of them can not. For example when many women were provided with financial skills

classes, they were able to start their own businesses and increase their incomes (Camfed USA).

Receiving either a secondary or university education greatly opens up the number of jobs women

can access. These jobs also come with an increase in pay. There is consistently a high correlation

between education status and income status (Iqbal 36). For example in Egypt, which has a

massive portion of their citizens living in poverty, the poverty rate is twenty-four percent for

illiterate people and only two percent for those with a university education (Iqbal 36). Without

this additional education they would have no way of obtaining the higher paying jobs and

improving their economic positions.

There are some issues that come with improving education. Many organizations put a

large amount of resources into building schools and hiring teachers, under the assumption that if

children have access to a school they will receive an education. Though this is definitely

necessary and should be continued, it is not the solution to the problem. In order for children to

receive the benefits of a school, they must attend class. The problem is that for all poor children,

there is a large opportunity cost to attending school. They are forgoing a wage in order to receive

an education that is often seen as poor quality anyway (Iqbal 35). These problems do have

solutions including building schools in rural communities so they can waste less time traveling

and offering subsidies for attendance in order to counteract the wages that could be received
(Iqbal 35). One example of this is demonstrated by an organization in Mexico, Oportunidades.

The organization gives families money to send their children to school compensating them for

the lost work/income of the child (Smith 64). Higher incentives are given to girls because they

are at the highest risk for dropping out even though their attendance has an incredibly high social

benefit (Smith 65). The program has increased the number of students who make it to high

school by 20% and has decreased child labor by 15% (Smith 65). Another organization in

Banglagesh is also working against the problem of attendance, specifically in rural populations.

It does this by giving little to no homework and having kids attend school only a few hours

everyday so they can still help work for their families. Smith explains an organization in India,

Pratham, who works to combat high drop out rates. They set up a program to train kids before

they start school in basic reading and math skills in order to make them more confident once they

are in school, so they are more likely to want to go regularly and not be intimidated (Smith 62).

This has greatly increased the number of students who attend public schools after completely the

program (Smith 67). Additionally they counsel both parents and students emphasizing the

importance of attendance (Smith 62). This is necessary for changing the ideology of many

countries that education is not important for children, which is especially applied to girls. The

implementation of these strategies will improve both primary and secondary education for

women.

Educating women about their rights is another way of improving their position in society.

Many women in developing countries face some form of abuse. This can range from rape and

physical violence to arranged marriages for young female children. For example, In Pakistan,

Amnesty International believes that 80% of women suffer from some form of domestic violence

(Critelli 140). Women are also very often denied the opportunity to make their own choices
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(Critelli 140). The main problem is that women do not know when they are being mistreated.

Though equality laws exist in the constitution, local customs and ordinances often undermine

them (Critelli 141). Even when the abuses these women face are against the law, women can not

be protected because the local communities ignore or even support the practices. Teaching

women what rights they have is the only way they can identify when they are being mistreated.

The next step is to then teach women about what they can do to get help if they are being

abused. There are many organizations in underdeveloped countries that focus on helping women

who have suffered through some sort of domestic violence. The problem is that if the often

isolated women and girls do not know about the organizations, they can not benefit from their

resources. There are a few different ways women can learn about their rights as well as how to

get help when they are being mistreated. Including this curriculum in school is a great way to

help children grow up knowing their rights, as abuse often starts at a young age. Additionally

public service announcements on the radio have been proven to be very effective in getting

information to women in underdeveloped countries (Simon 188). When women are educated

they also often become involved in helping other women. For example the work of Pakistani

women has had the largest effect on bringing the horrible laws and practices that allow different

forms of abuse to light (Critelli 142). This clearly demonstrates the way that educating women

about their rights has a multiplying effect as they often began to help other women facing the

same problems.

There are some complications women are faced with when they seek help or shelter from

abuse. They face many obstacles to joining movements and organizations that work to protect the

rights of women like threats and propaganda against them and their goals (Critelli 146). This can

be overcome by the international community. For one if women are provided with accurate
information about abuse, their rights, and human rights organizations, propaganda will not

produce the same effect it does now. The more challenging issue is the threat of violence that is

placed on women sometimes even from their own family members. The only way this can be

stopped is through pressure from the international community on the governments of these

nations. This is the best way to get the governments to change their laws to better protect

women’s rights or actually enforce the laws they already have in place especially on a local-

community level.

Education about reproduction is another way to improve women’s lives and the countries

they live in. Keeping family sizes down is an important way to improve the living conditions of

families. The more children a family has the less money they have to spend per person.

Additionally, many different human rights organizations identified that drastic increases in

population have caused a decrease in the quality of human rights in many poor countries (Meyer

and Seims 2127). Educating women about birth control is the best way to keep family sizes small

and manageable. There is some question as to the best way to do this. Since this pertains to

adults and not just young school-age girls, it can not just be taught in school, though that is

important as well. One study demonstrates a way that this can be accomplished. The goal of the

study was to promote awareness about cervical cancer and the importance of getting pap smears.

This concept is geared at the same demographic as birth control and is a very analogous issue.

The study focused on educating nurses/healthcare professionals as well as the women in the

community in order to produce more long term success . In the area where the study occurred,

two thirds of the population is poor, thirty percent are illiterate, and the average person has

received 2-3 years of education (Simon 188). They implemented a radio program stressing the

risks of the cancer as well as the importance and procedure of a pap smear (Simon 188). They set
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up a lecture series for nurses about pap smears and what procedures to take based on different

results. Women were able to answer more questions correctly about cervical cancer and pap

smears than before the program (Simon 189). Additionally there was a sharp increase in the

number of women who got pap smears (Simon 190). Knowledge also increased greatly among

nurses (Simon 190). The study is a great example of how public education can spread

information other than in school, and these strategies could definitely be applied to a number of

different things, including birth control and contraception. This would be greatly beneficial in

controlling family sizes.

The final type of education that would benefit the living conditions of women in

developing nations is computer education. For one, similar to trade skills and higher education,

computer skills provide women with the knowledge that allows them to take part in a whole

group of new jobs that they can not otherwise take part in. These jobs provide higher incomes

than the unskilled positions they usually fill. In India when large parts of the population began

receiving technical computer training, a whole new area of jobs opened up. These new jobs

provided much higher wages than the average income(Friedman 236). The broader benefit of

computers is the access to information they provide. Computers can connect women with the rest

of the world. They would have the ability to independently discover information about anything,

including some of the topics discussed earlier like birth control and women’s rights. Computer

skills would greatly benefit women immensely in all areas.

The problem with providing computers and developing these skills is the cost. It is much

greater than the other forms of education that would benefit women. There is no clear solution to

this. The best approach is to support computer education to the extent that the funds do exist as
well as encourage innovation to create simpler and lower cost devices that would still fit the

needs of the women in these countries.

It is clear that all of these forms of education improve the living conditions and economic

statuses of the women and their immediate families, but they will also improve the economies of

the developing countries these women live in. Women make up 46.7 percent of the world’s

official labor force, but they are only 31 percent of the labor force in developing countries

(Women at a Glance). Educating women would greatly increase the work force especially in

the area of jobs that require some skill set. This would increase the productivity of the nation,

boosting its economy. Additionally creating a more skilled workforce increases foreign

investment. When companies, especially from American and Western Europe, see there is a

population of people that can fill their jobs at a lower cost then their American and Western

European counterparts, they will move the jobs there. These jobs, though at a lower cost to the

company, still provide citizens in developing nations with a greater and more comfortable

income than they would receive otherwise. This has been demonstrated exactly in India. Now

that it is easier to send jobs anywhere in the world, companies utilize the skilled Indian workers

that earn lower wages than their American counterparts, while still providing them with a

comfortable living (Friedman 240). The foreign investment greatly improved India’s economy. A

similar process could easily occur in developing countries.

Finally educating women also increases the likelihood that the rest of the population will

also receive a better education. The women who are educated are eager to help others do the

same, multiplying the effects. Penelope, a young girl from Zambia who was able to receive an

education with a help of an American organization, stated, “I want to achieve so many things! I

want to establish a powerful business and employ more women. I want to go to college so I can
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become a school teacher. I want to help girls have more self-esteem and confidence. And of

course I want to make sure the children in my family go to school.” Many other girls who have

been able to obtain an education have expressed the same goals (Camfed USA). This clearly

demonstrates the way educating these women increases the chances of education for other

citizens especially the next generation.

In conclusion it is clear how great the benefits are of educating women in developing

countries. They are able to obtain better jobs and receive higher wages. They can also live

healthier lives with more manageable families. Women can free themselves from abuse.

Educated women can even help others improve their lives. Educating women increases the skill

and productivity of the population, which stimulates the nation’s economy. This improves the

living conditions of the country as a whole. Mwangala is a perfect example of this. Through the

help of an American organization Mwangala was able to receive an education. This allowed her

to get a better job and help support her family. Now Mwangala is working for the same

organization that helped her, Camfed. She enables many more girls who have faced some of the

same issues she has get an education as well as traveling around the world speaking about the

problems of poverty and how people can help. The education Mwangala was able to get changed

her life as well as the lives of all those she was then able to help. The best way to make these

achievements in education is to support the organizations already established. As demonstrated,

there already exist many programs that use the strategies proven most effective. The biggest

obstacle to improving the education of women is cost. By individually supporting these

organizations, especially financially, they can help more women in more countries. In addition

they would have the opportunity to help other organizations become more effective. Everyone
can make a difference in the lives of women like Mwangala by simply supporting these

organizations and encouraging their governments to do the same.

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Works Cited

Carol J. Simon, et al. "A community-based education program about cervical cancer

improves knowledge and screening behavior in Honduran women." Revista

Panamericana de Salud Pública 22.3 (2007): 187-193. Academic Search

Premier. EBSCO. Web. 4 Mar. 2011.

Camfed USA. Camfed. 19 March. 2011.

Critelli, Filomena M. "Women's Rights=Human Rights: Pakistani Women against Gender

Violence." Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare 37.2 (2010): 135-160. Academic

Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 4 Mar. 2011.

Friedman, Thomas L. The World is Flat. New York, NY: Picador, 2007. Print.

Iqbal, Farrukh. Sustaining Gains in Poverty Reduction and Human Development

in the Middle East and North Africa. Washington D.C.: The World Bank, 2006.

King, Elizabeth M., and M. Anne Hill. “Women’s Education in Developing Countries: An

Overview.” Women’s Education in Developing Countries. King, Elizabeth M.,

and M. Anne Hill. Baltimore, Maryland: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1993. Print.

Meyer, Carinne, and Sara Seims. "The Unique Role of U.S. Foundations in International Family

Planning and Reproductive Health." Journal of Women's Health (15409996) 19.11

(2010): 2125-2132. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 4 Mar. 2011.

Smith, Stephen. Ending Global Poverty: A Guide to What Works. New York, New

York: Palgrave MacMillan, 2005.

Women at a Glance. The United Nations. 1997. 19 March. 2011.