Facts, figures and statements

  • Nearly half the world’s population lives on less than two dollars a day. Close to one billion people suffer from chronic hunger while another billion do not have access to clean water. In 2007, 11 million children died from preventable diseases. An estimated 20 percent of people living on earth are illiterate. The living standards in the United States were better 200 years ago than they are in many African countries today.
  • When a girl in the developing world receives seven or more years of education, she marries four years later and has 2.2 fewer children
  • An extra year of primary school boosts girls’ eventual wages by 10 to 20 percent.  An extra year of secondary school: 15 to 25 percent
  • When women and girls earn income, they reinvest 90 percent of it into their families, as compared to only 30 to 40 percent for a man
  • 38 percent of girls in developing countries marry before age 18
  • One-quarter to one-half of girls in developing countries become mothers before age 18
  • 75 percent of 15 to 24 year olds living with HIV in Africa are female, up from 62 percent in 2001

References

“The grassroots efforts, bottom up approach in development work has repeatedly shown its superiority in bringing about economic and social change.”

“One study after another has shown that educating girls is one of the most effective ways to fight poverty. Schooling is also often a precondition for girls and women to stand up against injustice, and for women to be integrated in to the economy. Until women are numerate and literate, it is difficult for them to start businesses or contribute meaningfully to their national economies.”  -N. Kristoff and S. WuDunn, “Half the Sky”

“Second, we are focusing on the needs and contributions of women and girls, who are still frequently overlooked and underserved by health professionals who don’t notice their suffering or hear their concerns. Our commitment to promoting the health of women and girls is, of course, for their sake, but also for the sake of their families and communities. Because when a woman’s health suffers, her family suffers and then there is a ripple effect throughout a village as well. But when women are healthy, the benefits are similarly broad.”  -Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary of State, Aug. 16, 2010 on the Global Health Initiative