The Girl Effect

Recently I’ve been doing a lot of academic work around the devaluing of girls globally. Basically, in places all over the world female children are valued less than male children, so they are treated differently. This includes a lack of education and choices for girls. Because they are denied education and other things that male children have, they grow up differently and are subsequently valued less as adults. This means that female children are less likely to be enrolled in school or to complete school, and more likely to be married and have children at an earlier age. USAID reports that “of the 72 million primary school aged children who do not attend school worldwide, 57% are girls, in addition, girls are 4% less likely than boys to complete school.”

The devaluation of girls causes them to be more vulnerable to poverty, gender based violence- including trafficking, and disease. Suddenly, this has become a global problem affecting more than just the girls, but everyone. How can we work to fix this?

The Girl Effect is an organization that is offering girls the opportunity to change their circumstances by going to school and earning a living; and changing the world one girl, one family, one village at a time.





I think that The Girl Effect is a great model. They’re working on the ground to change the lives of girls and increase their societal value. How much better could we do than that?