Every girl whose access to education is compromised by systemic forces is failed by her society and the world, the First Lady Jeannette Kagame has said. She was addressing fellow First Ladies and wives of other dignitaries from Commonwealth countries, on Saturday, June 25 at the Kigali Cultural and Exhibition Village, during an event organized to showcase the benefits of investing in women so they can achieve economic independence. “There are brilliant, educated girls across the Commonwealth. Their successes and contributions to society are a testament to the benefits of female education, not just for one gender, but for the entire society,” she said. She briefly told them about Rwanda’s efforts to empower women, in the aftermath of the Genocide against the Tutsi which was characterized by issues of women’s health that spilt into challenges regarding girls’ education, and worsened by women’s economic subjugation. “The idea that a sole solution needed to cater to all these problems, in order to truly resolve any one of them, was intimidating. If all these issues were interwoven beyond our influence, a real way forward in girls’ education needed to be supported by similar policies of empowerment, capacity building, skills training and other service provision; a solution was needed in all branches of the lifecycle,” she said. She explained that this “life cycle approach,” from early childhood transitioning to adolescenthood towards a strong, informed and responsible adulthood, became the foundation of the girls education. Taking them through some of the work that her organisation – Imbuto Foundation - is doing towards girls’ education, she noted that she bears a personal attachment to the cause. “We worked with a resolute, daring, and highly self-accountable Ministry of Education that helped us to design programmes, ranging from the Edified Generation to the Best Performing Girls Scholarships. Along our journey, countless fantastic partners have supported us. Since then, our Early Childhood Development programmes have also enabled Imbuto Foundation, to cater to the education of young girls at their most lively and magical learning stage: the stage of early education. The progress has been wonderful, and truly gratifying, to witness,” she noted. She urged her counterparts that if they want to improve girls’ access to education around the world, their leadership choices must be a testament to the e vi goals. Here, she pointed out the need to elect leaders that defend the vision where girls and boys are equally able to access the classroom and equally empowered and equipped, to thrive in it. “We must agree that as a developmental issue, investment in girls’ education, is an investment in Commonwealth countries’ economies and progress,” she said. “Developing nations are set to gain two dollars and eighty cents, for every dollar that they invest in girl’s education! Programmes that balance out inequities, in access to education, can and must, be created in the empowering spaces, where sustainable development by 2030, for Commonwealth nations, is a key priority,” she added.
