International evidence shows that for each extra year spent by mothers in primary school, their children's risk of premature death is reduced by about eight per cent. In Niger, which has the world's highest infant-mortality rate, the children of mothers who have received primary education are 60 per cent more likely to survive. Education gives people a voice Education enables people to take control of their lives. It unlocks a wide range of civil, political, social, and economic rights. It gives people the confidence to speak out and to make their opinions heard.
Education is fundamental for meaningful democracy.
Girls account for two-thirds of the children not in school, and the gender gap is widening in many countries. For example, Ethiopia has one of the lowest rates of female school enrolment in the world, and one of the largest gender gaps. The world-wide discrimination against girls must change. If more girls are educated, it will lead to greater equality between men and women in all spheres of life. In short, without vigorous efforts to reverse current trends, inequalities in education will create an increasingly unequal, less prosperous, and more unstable world.