section 1 / the GloBal picture

section 1

the GloBal picture

This section compares and contrasts available data from various parts of the world to provide an overview of gendered disruptions to education.

Although progress has been slow, equality in access to education for boys and girls is improving around the world. Over the past 50 years, primary school enrolment among girls has grown by 24%, shrinking the gender gap by 12%.7

et, among children of primary y school age worldwide, there are still 5.5 million more girls out of school than boys.8 in Sub-Saharan africa, nearly one in four girls of primary school age is out of school, compared to one in five boys in the same age range.9

interestingly, the picture begins to change as girls and boys progress through school. Even though fewer girls worldwide enrol in school, they quickly find their footing, outperforming boys in the classroom. in most places, this has meant that once girls enrol in school, they are more likely to advance to, and complete, their secondary education.10 in 1998, there were more girls of secondary school age out of school than boys. today, the opposite is true.11 girls, on average, having better access to secondary education than boys, this secondary school advantage has not materialised for girls in Sub-Saharan africa, who continue to face severe disruptions to their education. Instead, Sub-Saharan Africa continues to reflect the world’s largest gender gaps in secondary school enrolment, at the expense of girls.

So, what does this tell us about the experiences of boys and girls from enrolment to school completion? how are gender roles, expectations and burdens shaping the way boys and girls enrol and participate in school, and the disruptions they face to their formal education? and, what might regional differences in the relationship between gender and school completion tell us about how gender intersects with socio-economic and political circumstances?

These questions are explored in more detail in this section.

while gender inequalities are greater in secondary school enrolment, trends vary across countries. Despite

Fig.1 GloBal upper secondary school completion rates By Gender, 2019 Things to consider: gender + socio-economic circumstances + regional political and cultural considerations.

sub-saharan africa

19

23

rest of the world

56 59

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60

girls Boys

Available UNICEF datasets show that globally, girls are more likely than boys to complete their secondary school education. But the reverse is true in Sub-Saharan Africa, where girls are at a disadvantage.12