I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2153 

To support empowerment, economic security, and educational opportunities 

for adolescent girls around the world, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 9, 2019 

Ms. FRANKEL (for herself, Mrs. BROOKS of Indiana, Mrs. LOWEY, Mr. 

FITZPATRICK, Mr. BERA, Ms. STEFANIK, Mr. WEBER of Texas, Ms. 

KELLY of Illinois, Mr. RUTHERFORD, and Ms. HOULAHAN) introduced 

the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 

A BILL 

To support empowerment, economic security, and educational 

opportunities for adolescent girls around the world, and 

for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Keeping Girls in School Act’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Appropriate congressional committees defined. 


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Sec. 3. Findings. 

Sec. 4. Sense of Congress. 

Sec. 5. Secondary education for adolescent girls. 

Sec. 6. Global strategy requirement. 

Sec. 7. Transparency and reporting to Congress. 

1 SEC. 2. APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES DE2 FINED. 

3 In this Act, the term ‘‘appropriate congressional com4 mittees’’ means— 

5 (1) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the 

6 Committee on Appropriations of the House of Rep7 resentatives; and 

8 (2) the Committee on Foreign Relations and 

9 the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate. 

10 SEC. 3. FINDINGS. 

11 Congress finds the following: 

12 (1) Adolescence is a critical period in a girl’s 

13 life, when significant physical, emotional, and social 

14 changes shape her future. 

15 (2) Adolescent girls are particularly vulnerable 

16 to HIV/AIDS, child, early and forced marriage, and 

17 other forms of violence which are detrimental to 

18 their futures, as evidenced by the following statistics: 

19 (A) Each year, 380,000 adolescent girls 

20 and young women become newly infected with 

21 HIV, more than 1,000 every day, and comprise 

22 the fastest-growing demographic for new infec23 tions in sub-Saharan Africa. 


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1 (B) Each year, 12,000,000 adolescent girls 

2 around the world are married before their 18th 

3 birthday, and more than 650,000,000 women 

4 alive today were married as children. 

5 (C) Child marriages often interrupt school6 ing, limit opportunities, and impact the phys7 ical, psychological and social well-being of such 

8 girls. If there is no reduction in child marriage, 

9 the global number of women married as chil10 dren is projected to increase by 150,000,000 by 

11 2030. 

12 (D) One-quarter to one-half of girls in de13 veloping countries become mothers before the 

14 age of 18, and girls under 15 are five times 

15 more likely to die during childbirth than women 

16 in their 20s. 

17 (3) Approximately 130,000,000 girls around the 

18 world are not in school, and millions more are failing 

19 to acquire basic reading, writing, and numeracy 

20 skills. 

21 (4) Girls between the ages of 10 and 19 are 

22 three times more likely than boys to be kept out of 

23 school, particularly in countries affected by conflict. 

24 (5) Due to discriminatory gender norms and ex25 pectations, disparities in access to safe and quality 


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1 education manifest early in a girl’s life and continue 

2 to become more pronounced throughout adolescence. 

3 (6) Girls living with disabilities are less likely to 

4 start school and transition to secondary school than 

5 boys living with disabilities and other children, and 

6 just 1 percent of women with disabilities are literate 

7 globally. 

8 (7) While two-thirds of all countries have 

9 achieved gender parity in primary education, only 40 

10 percent have achieved gender parity in secondary 

11 education. 

12 (8) Adolescent girls who remain in school are 

13 more likely to live longer, marry later, have healthier 

14 children, and, as adults, earn an income to support 

15 their families, thereby contributing to the economic 

16 advancement of communities and nations. 

17 (9) Since July 2015, more than 100 public-pri18 vate partnerships have been formed between the 

19 United States Government and external partners to 

20 support innovative and community-led solutions in 

21 targeted countries, including Malawi and Tanzania, 

22 to ensure adolescent girls receive a quality edu23 cation. 

24 (10) The United States Global Strategy to Em25 power Adolescent Girls, published in March 2016, 


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1 has brought together the Department of State, the 

2 United States Agency for International Develop3 ment, the Peace Corps, and the Millennium Chal4 lenge Corporation, as well as other agencies and pro5 grams such as the President’s Emergency Fund for 

6 AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), to address the range of 

7 challenges preventing adolescent girls from attaining 

8 an inclusive and equitable quality education leading 

9 to relevant learning outcomes. 

10 (11) According to the United States Global 

11 Strategy to Empower Adolescent Girls, which is the 

12 first foreign policy document in the world solely 

13 dedicated to the rights and empowerment of girls 

14 globally, ‘‘[w]hile the Millennium Development Goals 

15 improved outcomes for girls in primary education, 

16 they also highlighted the need for a targeted focus 

17 on adolescents and young adults, particularly re18 garding the transition to and completion of sec19 ondary school’’. 

20 (12) PEPFAR, through its DREAMS (Deter21 mined, Resilient, Empowered, AIDS-free, Mentored, 

22 and Safe) Initiative, has worked to address a num23 ber of the specific barriers to education that adoles24 cent girls face. 


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1 SEC. 4. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

2 It is the sense of Congress that— 

3 (1) every child, regardless of place of birth, de4 serves an equal opportunity to access quality edu5 cation; 

6 (2) the United States has been a global leader 

7 in efforts to expand and improve educational oppor8 tunities for those who have been traditionally 

9 disenfranchised, particularly women and girls; 

10 (3) gains with respect to girls’ secondary edu11 cation and empowerment have been proven to cor12 relate strongly with progress in gender equality and 

13 women’s rights, as well as economic and social 

14 progress, and achieving gender equality should be a 

15 priority goal of United States foreign policy; 

16 (4) achieving gender parity in both access to 

17 and quality of educational opportunity contributes 

18 significantly to economic growth and development, 

19 thereby lowering the risk for violence and instability; 

20 and 

21 (5) education is a lifesaving humanitarian inter22 vention that protects the lives, futures, and well23 being of girls. 

24 SEC. 5. SECONDARY EDUCATION FOR ADOLESCENT GIRLS. 

25 (a) AUTHORITY.—The Administrator of the United 

26 States Agency for International Development may enter 


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1 into acquisition, assistance, or results-based financing 

2 agreements, including agreements combining more than 

3 one such feature, for activities addressing the barriers de4 scribed in subsection (b) that adolescent girls face in ac5 cessing a quality secondary education. Such activities 

6 shall— 

7 (1) set outcome-based targets to demonstrate 

8 qualitative gains; 

9 (2) use existing United States Government 

10 strategies and frameworks relevant to international 

11 basic education and gender equality, including evi12 dence-based interventions, to— 

13 (A) integrate new technologies and ap14 proaches, including to establish or continue 

15 public-private partnerships or to pilot the use of 

16 development impact bonds (the results of which 

17 are verified by an independent evaluation); 

18 (B) to the greatest extent possible, apply 

19 quasi-experimental and scientific, research20 based approaches; 

21 (C) promote inclusive, equitable and sus22 tainable educational achievement; and 

23 (D) support a responsible transition to 

24 education systems that are sustainably financed 

25 by domestic governments; and 


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1 (3) ensure that schools provide safe and quality 

2 educational opportunities and create empowering en3 vironments, so that girls can enroll in and regularly 

4 attend school, successfully transition from primary 

5 to secondary school, and eventually graduate having 

6 achieved learning outcomes and positioned to make 

7 healthy transitions into adulthood. 

8 (b) SPECIFIC BARRIERS.—The barriers described in 

9 this subsection include— 

10 (1) harmful societal and cultural norms; 

11 (2) lack of safety at school or traveling to 

12 school, including harassment and other forms of 

13 physical, sexual, or psychological violence; 

14 (3) child, early, and forced marriage; 

15 (4) female genital mutilation; 

16 (5) distance from a secondary school; 

17 (6) cost of secondary schooling, including fees, 

18 clothing, and supplies; 

19 (7) inadequate sanitation facilities and products 

20 available at secondary schools; 

21 (8) prioritization of boys’ secondary education; 

22 (9) poor nutrition; 

23 (10) early pregnancy and motherhood; 

24 (11) HIV infection; 

25 (12) disability; 


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1 (13) discrimination based on religious or ethnic 

2 identity; and 

3 (14) heavy workload due to household tasks. 

4 (c) COORDINATION AND OVERSIGHT.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The United States Agency 

6 for International Development Senior Coordinator 

7 for International Basic Education Assistance, in co8 ordination with the United States Agency for Inter9 national Development Senior Coordinator for Gender 

10 Equality and Women’s Empowerment and the Am11 bassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues at the 

12 Department of State, shall be responsible for the 

13 oversight and coordination of all activities of the 

14 United States Government carried out under this 

15 section. 

16 (2) DEVELOPMENT OF AGREEMENTS.—In the 

17 development of results-based financing agreements 

18 described in subsection (a), the Senior Coordinators 

19 shall consult with the United States Agency for 

20 International Development Innovation, Technology, 

21 and Research Hub or any successor center that is 

22 responsible for developing innovative tools and ap23 proaches to accelerate development impact. 


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1 (3) COORDINATION WITH OTHER STRATE2 GIES.—Activities carried out under this section shall 

3 also be carried out in coordination with— 

4 (A) the United States Global Strategy to 

5 Empower Adolescent Girls described in section 

6 6; and 

7 (B) the United States Government Strat8 egy on International Basic Education, including 

9 its objective to expand access to quality basic 

10 education for all, particularly marginalized and 

11 vulnerable populations. 

12 (d) ACCEPTANCE OF SOLICITATIONS FOR AWARDS.— 

13 The Administrator of the United States Agency for Inter14 national Development shall seek to accept solicitations for 

15 one or more awards, pursuant to the authority in sub16 section (a), to conduct activities under this section begin17 ning not later than 180 days after the date of the enact18 ment of this Act. 

19 (e) MONITORING AND EVALUATION.—The Adminis20 trator of the United States Agency for International De21 velopment shall seek to ensure that activities carried out 

22 under this section— 

23 (1) employ rigorous monitoring and evaluation 

24 methodologies, including ex-post evaluation, to en25 sure that such activities demonstrably close the gap 


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1 in gender parity for secondary education and im2 prove the quality of education offered to adolescent 

3 girls; 

4 (2) disaggregate all data collected and reported 

5 by age, gender, marital and motherhood status, dis6 ability, and urbanity, to the extent practicable and 

7 appropriate; 

8 (3) adhere to the Policy Guidance on Promoting 

9 Gender Equality of the Department of State and the 

10 Gender Equality and Female Empowerment Policy 

11 of the United States Agency for International Devel12 opment; and 

13 (4) use, to the extent possible, indicators and 

14 methodologies identified by the Interagency Working 

15 Group for the Strategy on International Basic Edu16 cation. 

17 SEC. 6. GLOBAL STRATEGY REQUIREMENT. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 

19 date of the enactment of this Act, and every 5 years there20 after, the Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s 

21 Issues at the Department of State, in consultation with 

22 the Senior Coordinator for Gender Equality and Women’s 

23 Empowerment and the Senior Coordinator for Inter24 national Basic Education Assistance at the United States 

25 Agency for International Development, shall— 


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1 (1) review and update a United States global 

2 strategy to empower adolescent girls; 

3 (2) provide a meaningful opportunity for public 

4 review and consultation on the strategy; and 

5 (3) submit the strategy to the appropriate con6 gressional committees. 

7 (b) INITIAL STRATEGY.—For the purposes of this 

8 section, the ‘‘United States Global Strategy to Empower 

9 Adolescent Girls’’, published in March 2016, shall be 

10 deemed to fulfill the initial requirement under subsection 

11 (a). 

12 (c) CONSULTATION REQUIRED.—In reviewing and 

13 updating the strategy under subsection (a), the Ambas14 sador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues, the Senior Co15 ordinator for Gender Equality and Women’s Empower16 ment, and the Senior Coordinator for International Basic 

17 Education Assistance shall consult with— 

18 (1) the heads of relevant Federal departments 

19 and agencies their designees, as well as experts on 

20 adolescent girls, gender equality, and empowerment 

21 issues throughout the Federal Government; 

22 (2) the appropriate congressional committees; 

23 (3) representatives of United States civil society 

24 and multilateral organizations with demonstrated ex25 perience and expertise in empowering adolescent 


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1 girls or promoting gender equality, including local 

2 civil society organizations and beneficiaries where 

3 possible; and 

4 (4) local organizations and beneficiaries in 

5 countries receiving assistance pursuant to the strat6 egy, including youth and adolescent girls’ organiza7 tions. 

8 SEC. 7. TRANSPARENCY AND REPORTING TO CONGRESS. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year after the 

10 date of the enactment of this Act, and every 180 days 

11 thereafter until each activity initiated pursuant to the au12 thorities under this Act has concluded, the Administrator 

13 of the United States Agency for International Develop14 ment, in coordination with the Secretary of State, shall 

15 submit to the appropriate congressional committees a re16 port describing— 

17 (1) the activities initiated under the authorities 

18 provided in this Act; and 

19 (2) the manner and extent to which such activi20 ties are monitored and evaluated, in accordance with 

21 section 5(e). 

22 (b) AVAILABILITY.—The report required by sub23 section (a) shall be made available on a text-based, searchVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:19 Apr 17, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2153.IH H2153

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1 able, and publicly available website of the United States 

2 Agency for International Development. 

Æ 


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