EDUCATE THE GIRL CHILD TO HAVE THE NATION EMPOWERED

Members who attended the debate

In the past African cultural settings, education for the girl child was almost a taboo and if a girl went to school, the best and highest level she could reach was primary or junior level. I will not say that parents were primitive, but they felt giving the girl child fees and an opportunity to reach school was wastage of resources. However, I am told that the only good and better institution they could prepare girls for was marriage because they expected bridal price. Sorry to the past generation.

During our discussion (debate) “Girls should be given priority to education”, under “NEZIKOKOLIMA” project, children shared ideas and views that made everybody agree that “educating the girl child is educating a nation” and that it was of great importance to have girls go to schools. Among the reasons raised are;

Girls are the mothers of tomorrow’s generation (nation), so they need to be educated in order to make good mothers and thus create a very good and productive future generation.

Mubezi Rose – Lugolole Learning Centre

“Educating a girl is not wastage of resources instead it is a better investment for the parents because when girls get employed they think of their parents first than boys who think of their families (wives and kids) and their parents – in law” Rose explained.

When ladies are educated, the health and hygiene in homes and families is improved because they will know what to do and how to do it.

The area councilor who was the guest speaker gave an example of a lady who went to the hospital and she was instructed by the Doctor to first shake the syrup before giving to the child but instead she forgot to shake the syrup and shook the kid.

Denying them opportunity to education is destroying their talents. Many girls have been successful, their talents have been so helpful to communities and if really given chance to education, girls make good leaders who are more development oriented.

“If we want our communities grow and develop, we should not leave other groups behind, we need to have all groups together for each has its own potential and can cause effect. The discrimination is against God’s setting because God created all equal and with a purpose and reason. Girls should be taken as boys are and also women should be handled the way men are handled. This will make us all more suiting before the presence of God the creator” Wabailewa Shaban Said

By:

Mathias Walwana