Former first lady Michelle Obama unveiled Thursday an Obama Foundation effort called the Global Girls Alliance which “seeks to empower adolescent girls around the world through education.”
Obama announced the program in an op-ed published by CNN on Thursday, which was the International Day of the Girl, as she recounted her experience traveling to a small village in Liberia during her last overseas trip as first lady.
“What I remember most from that day, though, couldn’t be more clear: It’s the promise inside each of those girls — girls who show up every day to learn,” Obama wrote. “They show up even after walking for miles or waking up early to earn some extra money to help pay their school fees. They show up even though their families depend on them to take care of younger siblings, cook meals, and ensure their household is running smoothly. They show up even though many are pressured to marry as adolescents, sidetracking their own goals for a man’s.”
Obama noted that more than 98 million young girls around the globe do not attend school for a variety of reasons such as limited resources, early pregnancies, and violence.
“Equally pernicious is something they’re taught from an early age — the belief that because they’re girls, they’re simply unworthy of an education. It’s the same toxic mindset that keeps girls here in the United States from believing they can become computer scientists or CEOs. And it’s a mindset that together, we’ve got to change,” Obama wrote.
The Global Girls Alliance is planning to assist local grassroots leaders by connecting them with other grassroots leaders to share best practices and resources, and providing these leaders with financial support through a GoFundMe Global Girls Alliance Fund.
“The evidence is clear. Girls who attend secondary school earn higher salaries, have lower infant and maternal mortality rates, and are less likely to contract malaria and HIV,” Obama said. “And studies have shown that educating girls isn’t just good for the girls, it’s good for all of us.”
“As one girl told me that day in Unification Town, ‘If we are educated, the nation will be educated.’ Those words are true for her, they’re for her nation, and they’re true for all of us: The future of our world is only as bright as the future of our girls,” Obama added.
[Also read: Michelle Obama rebuffs Eric Holder’s ‘kick them’ remark: ‘Fear is not a proper motivator’]
