In 1999 Kofi Annan described female education as the “single highest returning social investment in the world today”. I have recently come across a charity called Camfed which is an international, non-governmental organisation founded in Cambridge in 1993 to support the education of girls and women in Africa, specifically in Zimbabwe, Zambia and Tanzania.
The core idea behind Camfed’s work is that improving girls’ education, especially at secondary schools where gender differences are more obvious – is the first, most critical step towards the economic empowerment of women. They have found that this approach has directly improved economic growth, reduced family size, cut the spread of aids and reduced child and maternal mortality. An extra year of female education can reduce infant mortality by 5 – 10%. In Africa, children of mothers who have had five years of primary education are 40% less likely to die before the age of five than those of uneducated mothers. Women who have had an education choose to delay marriage and have fewer children.
It seems such an obvious idea. Sponsoring female children to go to school. Some of those women have now set up CAMA, a group for female school leavers which offers basic business training and community outreach.
Interesting that I have chosen to write about a charity in Africa on the day the markets have suffered their worst ever one day fall, as a result of the USA choosing not to rescue the failed banks. Markets are collapsing left, right and centre. I wonder if, during leaner times there is a significant reduction in donations to charities abroad. I hope not.
Expat mum
September 30, 2008Bless you for mentioning this. Education for girls is crucial everywhere but especially so in Africa it would seem. I support a tiny school in Ghana and of the 5 students who graduated to high school this past year, two of them were female. Baby steps.
Janelle
October 1, 2008ah lulu. you always mention succint and important things. and the world is one crazy place right now. also just read Is My Grass Greener…man. forgiveness is the only way forward…and you will forgive him when you can..and things can only move forward then. big love xxx janelle
Anonymous
October 1, 2008i work for a charity and this year’s donations have been quite significantly down. not sure it can be 100% attributed to the rising cost of living and economic insecurity, but its definitely a factor.
Angela
October 1, 2008I wish they could secure the development aid that Mr. Mugabe put on his Swiss bank accounts. I have just read there are 4 billion dollars on his alone. Billion. They were all meant to go into schools and hospitals and streets and electricity, but most of all into education. I wonder why apparently nobody seems to have the power to shake this money out off these guys??