~ Luis Ignacio Silva
(West Africa 28 August, 1993; cited in "Gender Equity and Women Empowerment in Africa" )
What happens when women are educated and empowered?
Did you know:
Educated women farmers in Kenya increase productivity by 24%
1-3 years of education for mothers decreases infant mortality by 15%
The child of a Zambian mother with basic education has a 25% greater chance of survival
African women provide 80% of the labor for subsistence production
Sadly...
women still account for 64% of illiterate adults--only 89 women can read for every 100 men
in 2006, the gender wage gap was 30-40% in some countries
70% of the world's poor are females
and
"in no society do women fare as well as men in political and economic opportunities"
photo taken in Guatemala 2009
all statistics cited from Geo-JaJa et al (2009). "Gender Equity and Women Empowerment in Africa: The Education and Economic Nexus." Race, Ethnicity and Gender in Education