Women’s education: A source of economic relief

Education is the pathway to the ultimate development of a nation; it is believed that education is the best weapon to bring positive change to society.  Unfortunately, our social settings here in Africa favour the male gender. It’s obvious that men enjoy a greater opportunity in education than women, and this, to a large extent, […]

Education is the pathway to the ultimate development of a nation; it is believed that education is the best weapon to bring positive change to society. 

Unfortunately, our social settings here in Africa favour the male gender. It’s obvious that men enjoy a greater opportunity in education than women, and this, to a large extent, has held our economic development backward. 

In the first place, we need to acknowledge women’s education as the process of giving women and their children the opportunity to acquire knowledge and skills which transform them into more useful and viable people in society. 

Women’s education, as propounded by an Indian feminist, Bihch Wada Phule on her 19th birthday anniversary in 1948, is a great challenge that affects the economic growth and development of a country and needs to be given due consideration.

Religious beliefs, traditions, early marriage, inequality as well as our unrepentant mentality are the major factors that inhibit women’s education and make men more educated than women.

To remedy the situation, there should be equality in terms of access to quality education for both men and women, our people should change their mindset and ideology that women should not be given equal opportunity for education. Such opportunity will lead to a great sigh of relief in the burden most men complain about, and families will become prosperous as educated women can be employed or empowered to also take on tangible financial burdens. 

Secondly, educated women may come up with better (hybridized) ideas in different spheres thereby kicking against the total reliance on the men’s ideas which may be archaic and self-centred. In effect, “two heads are better than one”.

Thirdly, allowing women’s education to thrive will bring about “a second chance for education” for those women who have lost their first chances to economic or other social reasons. This idea has proven very effective for example, some NGOs, like the Yasmin Elrufai Foundation in Kaduna State, run the ‘Women Literacy and Numeracy Programme’ in which they enrol young women to train them on basic literacy, numeracy, and civic education – just to reawaken what they learnt earlier and guide them more on how to continue with their education after the program. 

In addition to that, women’s education breeds peace against ignorance which is widely acknowledged as a great source of family conflicts and domestic violence exemplified in many homes. On the other hand, families that have both spouses educated have proven to be relatively peaceful and more orderly with a great sense of effective communication and fruitful understanding.

Finally, a saying suggests that “if you educate a man, you educate a single person, but if you educate a woman, you educate a nation”. This view holds that education, which is a source of social and economic relief, spreads more to the younger generation through women than men; just as it will bridge the ditch educational barrier at all costs and allow equal participation in key economic sectors.

Khadija Lukman and Ahmad Salis write from Kaduna, Kaduna State