शुक्रबार, १६ चैत २०८०
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शुक्रबार, १६ चैत २०८०

Alarming Situation on Girls Education in Nepal

Nabin Lamichhane २०७८ साउन ११ गते २१:०१

-Nabin Lamichhane

What happen to our future when we are about to lose our two years of schooling without attending our regular class, Ranjita a girl from Kailali shared.

Girls like Ranjita and many other students in community schools are away from the education more than a year which is very critical for their better transition to higher education, for them to get marriage early and could have potential for seasonal migration or engage in other job where they need to  keep their life at risks.

This situation is not only in Nepal UNESCO reported that one year into the COVID-19 pandemic, close to half the world’s students are still affected by partial or full school closures, and over 100 million additional children will fall below the minimum proficiency level in reading as a result of the health crisis

Whereas Malala Fund found that due to COVID-19, more than 20 million girls (from pre-primary to upper secondary) are at risk of dropping out and may never return to school which means the life of millions of girls is at risk due to the pandemic.

A Survey done in Sudurpaschim province identified due to the COVID-19 adolescents girls from marginalized girls are at higher risk than in other time.

With the closedown of all the schools and the lockdown imposed just before the start Exams and Academic years, majority of the In School Girls respondents consisting of secondary grades faced difficulties due to the indefinite postponement of the exams.

78.35% of the girls have stated that the indefinite postponement of the exam is one of the major factors contributing to psychological stress.

Followed by increase in psychological stress girls are facing more safeguarding issues in the time of COVID-19 as 12% of the girls voiced safety concerns during lockdown whereas the referral system was broken along with the school closure as 65% girls said they did not know where to contact in case of GBV, psychosocial distress or other similar issues.

In addition to these alarming fact, as girls are now at home they are engaged in household chores more than of normal days as more than 90% of the girls stated that they spent their time doing household chores.

These are the few example of how the education of girls is impacted due to COVID-19 but the alarming risk is the negative result due to the schools closure which would have impact in their future and impacting the next generation.

There is a saying that if a girls educate properly she should have strength to educate her family and society. Nevertheless, what would happen if a girl would not get proper education and could not complete the secondary school.

With the hope of education girls it is very important for parents, teachers and government on how they can support girls continue education rather than increasing household chores.

Parents could still support girls by sharing household chores and managing time for study, provide learning resources at home, share their device for distance learning, and engage with their peers and teachers at community.

Whereas the government should continue their scholarship,  offer remedial class to cover the session which were left out and   provide access to different services i.e. hygiene kit, health services and protection in the time of any violence.

Author is M.Phil Scholar

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