Girls Education in Kenya

Kenya’s free and compulsory education system (introduced in 2003) has increased gross enrollment rates to more than 90% nationally, but children from poor households still cannot afford to attend school. Approximately nine out of 10 impoverished children in Kenya fail to complete their basic education.

Girls gaining access to schooling continues to be an obstacle in various geographical areas such as the nomadic districts and the Nairobi slums. In addition, school drop out rates, especially amongst girls, are continually increasing. Approximately 65% of girls who are enrolled in primary school throughout Kenya dropout before completing the 8th grade.

Girl-only schools have proven effective in attracting, retaining and teaching girls, particularly in countries where girls and women are secluded or isolated. The absence of boys in school creates a more positive learning environment for girls, resulting in higher performance - particularly at the secondary level. Research shows that in Kenya girls’ probability of dropping out of co-educational secondary schools is affected by their in-class experience: preferential treatment given to boys and harassment of girls by male classmates increases girls’ dropout rate.

Other factors that contribute to the incredibly high drop out rates among girls are often attributed to barriers associated with reproductive health, maturation, early marriage and early pregnancy. Other factors that hinder girls’ regular attendance to school include a lack of sanitary pads and gender appropriate facilities such as latrines. Rather than facing the humiliation that they may encounter due to these conditions, girls often decide to stay home.

In addition to these setbacks there are several costs associated with schooling such as costs for books, uniforms, and supplies. Many families simply cannot afford to send their daughters to school at all. Also, in certain communities, cultural bias against educating girls remains. As a result, many girls are expected to take care of younger siblings or perform domestic chores such as cooking and fetching water, keeping girls out of school.

Investing in girls education can raise national income, and higher income can lead to more gender equality—in education and in other areas. Studies show that improved female education is linked to higher crop yields, lower HIV infection rates, reduced infant mortality and an increase in a country’s overall per capita income.


To Learn, More Visit:

Beads for Education:

http://www.beadsforeducation.org/

Center for Global Development’s Girls Count: A Global Investment & Action Agenda:
http://www.cgdev.org/content/publications/detail/15154

Center for Global Development’s Inexcusable Absence: Why 60 Million Girls Still Aren't In School and What to do About It:
http://www.cgdev.org/content/publications/detail/11898

Global Campaign for Education:
http://www.campaignforeducation.org/

UNICEF: Girls Education:
http://www.unicef.org/girlseducation/

UN Girls' Education Initiative:
http://www.ungei.org/

Population Council’s Transition Into Adulthood - Schooling Initiatives:
http://www.popcouncil.org/ta/schooling.html

World Bank:
http://www1.worldbank.org/education/

The Water Situation in Kenya

Statistics reveal that over 50% of the rural population and 25% of the urban population in Kenya has no access to clean water. Such water shortages are heavily disrupting to both social and economic dynamics throughout the country.

The current wave of long drought periods in Kenya is only expected to continue. Many people die due to unsafe water usage and there is a high child mortality rate due to disease caused by unclean water. The crisis is being further fueled by various other factors; unfair allocation, poor management, pollution, untreated sewage, rampant deforestation and a rapidly increasing population are all contributors to the fact that Kenya is forecasted to run short of water supplies by 2025.

The droughts have caused a severe shortage of water for both domestic and livestock use. As a result of the recurrent droughts, the Maasai must now walk for days to find pastures and water for their herds. The Maasai, who have historically relied on cattle for their livelihood, struggle to survive as more and more cows die every day because of the drought. In the face of countless difficulties, the Maasai have begun to raise alternative livestock, such as camels, that are more resilient to dry weather.
 
The effect of deteriorating water services can be highly gender-specific. When water is hard to obtain, girls and women devote more time to collecting water and less to income-generating activities—particularly in Africa and rural Asia. Maasai women often travel many miles to fetch water, which is sometimes unavailable and often contaminated. Contaminated water can lead to illness. When very young members of the household fall sick, adolescent girls are significantly more likely than adolescent boys and mothers to increase their participation in housework and to decrease their time in income-generating activities and in school.

Approximately 19 percent of women in rural Africa, spend more than one hour on each water-fetching trip. This time intensive process of gathering water often prevents females from partaking in other activities that can generate income, or in the case of young girls, prevents them from attending school. Studies show that girls are 12% more likely to attend school if water is available within 15 minutes from their home.


To Learn, More Visit:

Human Development Report: Beyond Scarcity: Power, Poverty and the Global Water Crisis
http://hdr.undp.org/en/reports/global/hdr2006/

The Voss Foundation - Latakwen, Kenya Project
http://thevossfoundation.org/Projects.html

The Earth Institute, Columbia University:
http://www.earth.columbia.edu/articles/view/2125

Quench the Thirst – The Maasai Cultural Exchange Project:
www.quenchthethirst.org

The UN Works, Global Water Crisis:
http://www.un.org/works/sub2.asp?lang=en&s=19

World Bank – Water Supply and Sanitation:
http://www.worldbank.org/html/extdr/thematic.htm