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Girls’ Education in Chad Progresses After Outlaw of Child Marriage

Girls' Education in Chad
In 1960, Chad achieved independence from France. For close to half a century, Chad was embroiled in regional conflict and internal upheaval. As the conflict has begun to subside, the Chadian government is pursuing increased governance and development. Girls’ education in Chad is a salient point in development for the government.

As the Chadian government works to improve educational conditions for girls and the population at large, Chad continues to receive a large influx of refugees from Nigeria, Libya and the Central African Republic. For many of these refugees, the chances of returning to their countries seem unlikely. Therefore, the issue of providing education to girls becomes an even greater task. 

Statistics on Girls’ Education in Chad Show Inequality Compared to Boys

According to the United Nations Girls’ Education Initiative (UNGEI), the female literacy rate between the ages of 15 and 24 is roughly 41 percent. In contrast, the literacy rate for males in the same range sits at 53 percent. Furthermore, 49 percent of females have never attended primary school, compared to 42 percent of males. Furthermore, the Global Education Monitoring Report notes that the average number of years of education for females is 3.16 years.

Although the Chadian government has made primary and secondary education compulsory, girls are disproportionately less educated. One major contributor to this was the now-defunct legal marriage age. According to Chadian law, girls were allowed to marry at the age of 15, and 72.3 percent of girls married before the age of 18. At face value, this may not appear to be a major reason why girls have less access to school. However, it becomes evident when studying secondary school statistics. The transition from primary to secondary education for girls is 82 percent, which remains relatively close to male transition rates. But only 9 percent of these females manage to complete their secondary education, presumably because many girls married and left school.

Government Projects and New Marriage Age Minimum Help Girls

Chad has received large amounts of support from UNICEF through various education initiatives. One initiative, the Revitalizing Basic Education in Chad project, aims to provide quality education to impoverished children and adolescents in Chad. The project’s major goals are to provide quality education for 34,760 children who are currently out of school. Supporting the Chadian government’s efforts, this initiative plans to raise primary school completion rates to 80 percent by 2020. This project has the potential to greatly improve girls’ education in Chad. 

In 2015, Chad’s president launched a campaign to end child marriage and raise the legal marriage age to 18. This initiative was entered as a bill in Chad’s parliament and was successfully passed in 2016. Strict penalties were introduced; an individual who marries a female under the age of 18 can face up to 10 years in prison and a substantial fine. This legislative success will play a major role in girls’ education in Chad. 

Girls’ education in Chad still presents major challenges to the government and NGOs. However, great strides have been made to improve girls’ education in the country. With the support of UNGEI and continued educational reforms passed by the Chadian government, as well as raising the legal age of marriage, the future of girls’ education in Chad is improving. For these successes to continue, it is imperative that Chad continues to receive aid and guidance in developing a robust educational system. The ultimate goal is equal opportunity for all. 

– Colby McCoy
Photo: Flickr

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Women’s Empowerment in Chad

Women's Empowerment in ChadLike in a lot of the countries in Africa, women’s empowerment in Chad is lacking immensely. Lack of freedom, child marriage, violence and mutilation are a few of the issues women must face in Chad.

A tradition that resides in many countries in Africa, in different tribes and families, is female genital mutilation(FGM), an act that young girls must go through as a rite of passage into womanhood. One type of practice is confined to the eastern parts of the country nearing Sudan, but FGM crosses ethnic and religious lines and is performed by Christians and Muslims all over Chad.

There is an estimate that 60 percent of the women in Chad have undergone the procedure and that it is even more prevalent in rural parts of the country. There is no law that makes these practices a crime, but the act is prosecutable as an involuntary physical assault against a minor. A new law, drafted in 2001, would specifically criminalize the practice of FGM.

Child marriage is extremely common in Chad and is the main reason why young girls have to leave school early. Over two-thirds of young girls will have been married before the age of 18. To add, it is a norm in the country for many of the men to have more than one wife and large extended families of wives and children. There are organizations that are trying to raise awareness about the higher health risks for young girls when they become pregnant and are also trying to encourage them to stay in school.

In Chad, there is inequality between the genders in three different dimensions. The different dimensions being reproductive health, empowerment and labor market participation. Reproductive health refers to maternal ration and adolescent birthright. Empowerment refers to the share of parliamentary seats held by women and the share of the population, who are women, with at least some secondary education.

With inequality of genders comes violence. Around 18 percent of women in Chad who have been in a relationship, ranging from ages 15 to 49, have had a partner commit some type of physical or sexual violence act against them at least once in their lifetime. Women in Chad are citizens who have full voting rights but lack the knowledge about certain rights including their right to protection from gender-based violence. Many women are unaware that rape is a crime and see it as just an indecency. Without more knowledge on rights, women’s empowerment in Chad is stifled.

To bring back women’s empowerment in Chad, organizations like UNICEF are uplifting women by informing them about their rights. They are confronting violence and consolidating peace in Chad. The women of Chad are protesting against the violence against them but they still need support while they continue to deal with the gender-based violence and abuse in their country.

– Chavez Spicer

Photo: Flickr