Since 2000 there has been a focus on achieving universal access to primary education and gender parity as part of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Yet as we approach 2015, which was the target for achieving the MDGs, many girls are failing to undertake and complete a quality lower secondary education. Even though, in the words of former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, “there is no tool for development more effective than the education of girls”, 66 million girls are missing out on the education that could transform their own lives and the world around them.

Adolescent girls in particular have much to gain from education. Those who complete primary and secondary education are likely to earn a greater income over their lifetimes, to have fewer unwanted pregnancies, to marry later, and to break cycles of poverty within families and communities. Plan’s Because I am a Girl campaign aims to eliminate barriers preventing girls from successfully moving beyond primary to secondary education.

Beyond merely ensuring access to schools, however, the challenge is to ensure children’s access to quality education. Plan believes that quality education must include learning relevant to the needs, rights and aspirations of girls – and this learning must be delivered in safe school environments that are free from gender bias and promote gender equality.