Summary

GENDER SUMMARY
EDUCATION FOR ALL GLOBAL MONITORING REPORT 2015
boys have similar levels of educational achievement,
women continue to be under-represented and face
disproportionate disadvantage in political, economic
and civic life.
The absence of women in leadership and decisionmaking
positions, including as education ministers
and head teachers, is a consequence of inequity in
society; it is a serious barrier to progress and must
be addressed. Men who currently hold positions of
power must provide critical leadership for gender
equality through their roles as decision-makers,
public figures and opinion-makers in speaking out
about violence and discrimination against women.
To move forward, both men and women need to be
engaged in the process of change.
Education can and must play a significant role in
addressing gender biases and empowering women
and men to live better lives. With better education,
both women and men have more access to different
choices, are more equipped to question and
challenge traditional gender norms and inequalities,
and are thus better positioned to make different
decisions about their lives and those of others.
Education must also play a role in empowering
boys and men to think of alternative possibilities
and futures that are less violent, more caring and
more gender equitable. Education for women also
helps their families: consistent evidence shows that
with better education, women are more likely to
promote the importance of good nutrition, health
and education for their own children.
Education can be part of a social transformation
process involving men, women, boys and girls
towards developing a more gender-just society.
The proposed Sustainable Development Goal (SDG)
4 that calls for ‘inclusive and equitable quality
education and lifelong learning opportunities for
all’ has maintained a specific target for eliminating
gender disparities in access to education (target
4.5). However, if the proposed SDG 5 on gender
equality and empowerment is to be met, education
must play a powerful role. Moving forward into
the post-2015 sustainable development era,
transformative approaches to ensure gender
equality in education – and in society more widely –
are needed, encompassing formal and non-formal
educational provision for learners of all ages
(Box 8). In the new agenda, it is crucial that boys’
and girls’, and men’s and women’s interests are
allied and not pitted against one another.
In the Beijing Declaration of 1995, the full and
equal participation of men and women in society
was recognized as crucial for peaceful societies
and peaceful societies as crucial for sustainable
development. Achieving gender equality in education
will go a long way to realizing this aim and must be
a central goal of the new SDG agenda.
Increasing the availability and accessibility of
education by reducing school costs and improving
infrastructure has helped expand girls’ enrolment
and reduce gender gaps. Overall, however, EFA
targets, including those on gender equality, suffered
from lack of clarity on their parameters or expected
results. Serious gender inequality in educational
attainment remains and, in the case of boys’
disadvantage, continues to emerge. And related
notable failures include the fact that millions of
adults, especially women, continue to be denied
their right to literacy and numeracy.
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