One of the most important development topics that is near to my heart is the empowerment of women around the world. I’m not saying this because I am a feminist and think men are horrible dictators, but I truly believe in women and the stability they can bring to a community. It just doesn’t make sense for development practitioners to ignore suppressed women because they make up for about half the population and are the most in poverty.
Some facts from the Because I Am A Girl website :

• “70% of the one billion people living in extreme poverty are women and girls
• Girls are 3X more likely to become malnourished than boys
• In the poorest of countries, 50% of girls do not attend secondary school

Why you should care…

• An extra year of school for girls increases their lifetime income by 15%
• children of women who have completed primary school are less likely to die before the age of 5 than children of mothers with no schooling
• women invest more of their income into their families than men do”

This is why I care so much. Supporting and empowering our sisters around the world is not only a necessary development initiative, but something that I believe people are emotionally connected to. I hope no one ever loses sight of this and it opens some people’s eyes. It is time to allow half our population to have a voice and equal rights to a higher quality of life.
Learning more about this topic has lead me to think about it constantly while I am learning about development. Education is one of the most powerful tools in the world. I hope I can bring some of this female empowerment to my placement next year in Ghana. Like they say,
GIRL POWER!!
What do you think about empowering women? Important?