"School teaches us which path to take in our lives"

Education is essential to ending gender-based discrimination and poverty. For the women and girls we work with, survivors of trafficking and abuse, education strengthens their agency, empowering them to take part in the decisions that affect their lives.

In Nepal, only 3% of girls complete upper secondary school.

“Through lower expected earnings in adulthood and higher fertility over their lifetime, a lack of education for girls leads to higher rates of poverty for households, increasing the risks of trafficking. This is due to both losses in income and higher basic needs from larger household sizes. ”

“Women with primary education earn 14 to 19% more than those with no education at all. Yet women with secondary education may expect to earn almost twice as much, and those with tertiary education three times as much as those with no education. Women with a secondary education are less likely to state that they do not have enough money to buy food versus women with primary education or less."

Secondary/tertiary education also improves:

• labour force participation, especially full-time work,
• higher standards of living 
• improved psychological wellbeing
• decreased risk of family and domestic violence
• increased participation and autonomy within the family and community

From: Missed Opportunities: The High Cost of Not Educating Girls, The World Bank

Throughout their schooling, Asha Nepal provides the young women in their care with tailored support, important in preventing the high school dropout rates for young women and girls in Nepal. Once in grade 10, the girls start selecting courses, with Asha providing guidance, employment pathways and options for further education.
 
We asked two girls at Asha Nepal about their school experience, and what education means to them.

School is very important in our lives. We meet a lot of people and get to know everyone’s different characters. School is not only a means for us to acquire knowledge, but it also teaches which path to take in our lives.

What do you like most about school?

From school we can learn many good things and skills that we can use in our daily lives. The school develops our abilities and qualities. From school we can know what is wrong and what is right.

What do you change about school in Nepal to make it better?

I want to reduce the numbers of students in classroom because there are many students, so it is difficult to understand.

Students should be able to choose the subjects that interest them. Teachers should teach in a practical way. All students in poverty have the right to get education so government should give them free education.

What do you want to do when you finish school?

After finishing my schooling, I would like to visit places full of natural beauty and then want to complete my studies.

I go to college. I want to learn computer engineering after the Secondary School examination.

We know that education for girls can transform their futures.

The cost of a school year for each girl is $860, covering school fees, uniforms, textbooks, exams and all program fees. Project Didi supports the primary and secondary education of girls in Asha Nepal’s Family Based Care and encourages them to pursue tertiary education, but this is only possible with your help.

Your donation provides the tools and opportunities they need to reclaim their lives after violence.

I'd like to support education for girls