Project staff estimate that the number of girls sold into prostitution in the area has been cut by as much as 80 percent. Female Literacy Historically, girls have been given less access than boys to education. Statistically, it's getting easier for a girl to gain education, but in the developing world a girl still is twice as likely to be out of school as a boy. By 1992, combined primary and secondary school enrollment for girls in developing countries rose to 68 percent. In the world's least developed countries, however, the figure remains far smaller.
Poverty is the main factor that keeps girls out of school.
Even free education can be costly for poor families who pay for uniforms, books, and bus fare. When funds are limited, most parents keep sons in school rather than daughters. Families sending daughters to school also lose their help in cleaning, cooking, collecting wood and water, and looking after younger siblings. Especially in large families, parents often depend on daughters to assist with economic survival. Whatever keeps a girl out of school, the decision has long-reaching impact on the woman she will become, as well as on her children and her community.