During its peak, school closures from COVID-19 put nearly 1.6 billion children out of school, including 767 million girls. From gender-based violence to forced marriage and early pregnancy, girls face heightened challenges when schools are closed, and more than 20 million girls may never return to the classroom. The pandemic risks wasting untold human potential and could undermine decades of progress.
To ensure that every child has access to 12 years of public education, all stakeholders need to come together to keep education a top priority and strengthen education systems so that the most vulnerable children are not left behind.
This virtual webinar will bring together youth advocates and high-level political leaders to discuss gender equality and girls’ education as a crucial aspect of the COVID-19 response and recovery, and to shine a spotlight on education investments for intergenerational and innovative approaches to keep girls learning.
Speakers
- Rasmus Prehn, Minister for Development Cooperation, Denmark
- David Moinina Sengeh, Minister of Basic and Senior Secondary Education, Sierra Leone
- Alice Albright, CEO, Global Partnership for Education
- Aksel Jakobsen, State Secretary of International Development, Norway
Discussants
- Sonita Alizada, Rapper and Girls Not Brides Champion
- Aya Chebbi, African Union Youth Envoy
- Mohamed Sidibay, Peace Activist and GPE Youth Champion
Moderators
- Maryam and Nivaal Rehman, Co-Founders of The World With MNR and Education Transformers at UNGEI
Video recording