Invest in girls' education to fight poverty in Asia, UN says

Apr 29, 2011, 5:50 GMT

Bangkok - Spending more on girls' education would arguably be the best investment Asia could make in the fight against poverty, UNESCO said Friday.

'This potential investment offers high returns, including accelerated social and economic progress, and the unique power to break the cycle of poverty,' the UN body's Bangkok office said.

UNESCO statistics show that in South and West Asia only one in two women could read and write, compared with seven out of 10 men.

Across East Asia and the Pacific, 74.5 million women are illiterate.

UNESCO said past research had found that each additional year of average schooling raises annual gross domestic product growth by 0.37 per cent. An added year of school increases girls' eventual wages by 10 per cent, reduces the probability of infant mortality by 10 per cent, and decreases female fertility rates by 10 per cent.

'Moreover, when girls and women earn income, they reinvest 90 per cent of it in their families, as opposed to 30 to 40 per cent for men,' the UN agency said.

It released its latest figures on gender inequality in preparation for Global Action Week, starting Monday, an annual event which this year focuses on gender equality in education.

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