22 January 2021 [World Bank Blogs] – 2020 and the COVID-19 pandemic has brought to stark relief the importance of equitable education and training. While many countries have made significant progress in improving human capital over the past several years, the pandemic threatens hard-won gains, especially in narrowing gaps between girls and boys. Around the world, the transition to remote learning due to COVID-19 school closures presents challenges to connectivity and access to learning. In particular, girls often have fewer technical skills and less access to the internet, which may ultimately prevent them from acquiring the skills and know-how needed for the labor market.
The welcome announcement of promising vaccines against COVID-19 is critical as it can stem the spread of the virus – but what about the impact of the pandemic on other areas of a girl’s life which are critical to their growth and development such as access to education and training, and in turn jobs?
International Day of Education 2021 provides an important opportunity to reflect on this question, explore past trends using data from the Gender Data Portal, and renew our commitments to invest in girls’ education and to foster female labor force participation.