Girl Child Education: An Effective Tool For Climate Change Adaptation In Nigeria
By: Iccdi Africa
Tags: Women, Climate Change, Education, Adaptation, Girl Child Education

Up to 90% of people killed in weather-related disasters are female, and some of the effects of climate change on natural resources go back to intensify the impact of gender inequalities. Studies have also shown that a large percentage of people displaced by climate change globally are women. How do we solve this problem?

Educating the girl-child.

In 2017, a group of people came together to discuss sustainable solutions to reduce the effect of global warming — The “Project Drawdown”, initially co-founded in 2014 by Paul Hawken and Amanda Ravenhill brought together expertise from different disciplines — policymakers, researchers, scientists and business leaders, and they hoped to find ways to create an annual reduction in the greenhouse concentration released into the atmosphere over time.

The team analyzed different feasible methods and came up with about 80 practical measures that could be implemented immediately, as well as 20 long-term actions to help keep Carbon dioxide out of our atmosphere. Interestingly, out of these 100 solutions that can reduce the long-run effects of climate change, educating a girl child was number 6.

While this is doable and supposed to be a great outlook on things, UNESCO reports that as of 2014, 5.5 million girls in Nigeria were out of school. According to Wikipedia, from 1970 to 1994, the enrollment of girls in primary education in Nigeria steadily increased from 30% to as high as 80%. However, differences exist between the enrollment of males and females in all levels of education. Also, the dropout rate of girls is higher than boys and participation in STEM classes are lower for girls than boys. What this means is that fewer women will be seen in professional roles, economic fields, scientific fields and most importantly relevant to this article — in the combat against climate change.

On a level, educating a girl plays a more significant role in climate change adaptation than is presently being studied. Most studies correlate that a country’s female education levels and its resilience to climate disasters is more potent in countries where girls have achieved at least 10 years of schooling on average. However, more extensive research has shown that countries with higher proportions of women in parliament are more likely to ratify international environmental treaties, create protected land areas, and have stricter climate change policies. And, countries, where women have greater social and political status, produce fewer carbon emissions and have lower climate footprints.

Nigeria can use girl-child education as an effective tool for climate change adaptation in Nigeria. Here are 5 ways:

Invest in girls’ education to foster climate participation and leadership

Women comprise only a small percentage of the world’s most influential environmental decision-making bodies and hold only 12 per cent of the leadership positions in the world’s environment ministries. Meanwhile, other studies show that female leaders are incredibly effective in conservation and protection efforts, and are more likely to pursue more sustainable futures for their communities.

Developing girls to embrace leadership

Through education, efforts are mostly focused on increasing the number of girls in schools. While that is ultimately to empower women, their focus mostly misses an integral part of systematically training women on getting involved in activities that enhance leadership skills. Although some non-governmental institutions specialise in this, the government must look into processes that can encourage women to take up leadership roles.

Educating girls while promoting reproductive rights

With reproductive rights comes the possibility of ensuring equitable climate actions. Although there are links between high levels of female education and low levels on fertility rate, that isn’t the narrative that should be followed as it goes to ensure population control as opposed to respecting reproductive rights. Some international organisations are now helping to create a needed bridge by combining reproductive health services with climate change, thus equipping women who understand their reproductive rights with the policy mechanisms that aid climate adaptation.

Educate girls to build a green economy

Transitioning to a green economy is easily every country’s goal — Nigeria included. This transition is like the perfect climate adaptation solution that successfully adds up pros of economic development and the cons of environmental degradation into one. Due to its benefits, companies, organisations, NGOs are constantly attracted to it.

However, even with their preservation and sustainability skills, women aren’t on the forefront because only a few women are positioned to lead green sector companies. Girls need to be educated with a focus on how to build and manage green companies that can contribute to climate change mitigation and adaptation in Nigeria.

Opportunities for girls in STEM education

We have established that quality education plays a critical role in equipping girls with the skills to build a green economy. However, an investment in educating girls in STEM — where green industries eventually emerge from, can help pave a path that ensures that the Nigerian girl child will not only participate but also confidently lead innovative processes to tackle climate change.

Conclusion

As much as the endpoint is for the decision-makers to see the education of a girl-child as a fundamental human right, it’s also a great way to show the need to make room for women in the environmental sector. An increased number of women in climate-related positions brings positive outcomes for the country and the planet.

The rate at which the planet approaches the catastrophic implications of climate change calls for Nigeria to start finding solutions. National strategies may help by amping up technical and sociological solutions. Nevertheless, our country, Nigeria, needs to pay attention to using one stone to kill two birds — tackling climate change and upholding human rights. Basically, the rights of children to have a bright future & the right for girls to be educated.

Article by Amah Onyedikachi — ICCDI Africa Volunteer.