UNITED NATIONS GIRLS EDUCATION INITIATIVE

INFORMATION BY COUNTRY

Equatorial Guinea: Background

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Equatorial Guinea has become one of sub-Saharan Africa's biggest oil producers. Yet few people have benefited from the oil riches, and the country ranks near the bottom of the United Nations Human Development Index.

Gender equality and parity in education are priorities of the Government, but challenges remain in terms of moving from action plans to specific strategies targeted to accelerate girls’ education.
 
Barriers to girls’ education

  • Child marriage and pregnancy force girls to drop out of school.
  • Girls are kept out of school to do household chores.
  • Family structures are fragmented, with children moving from rural areas to cities to find work and attend school without parental care.
  • Sexual exploitation and prostitution of under-aged girls is a growing concern for the authorities in Equatorial Guinea.

UNGEI in action

The Equatorial Guinea Girls’ Education Initiative was launched in 2006. The UNGEI acronym has been translated to Spanish, and the initiative is known as ‘Iniciativa Educación de las Niñas’. It works to eliminate gender disparities through the promotion of access to quality education for girls at all levels.

Key initiatives

  • Establishment of social and political commitments leading to the definition of a girls’ education acceleration policy.
  • Sensitization and social mobilization to promote behavioural change towards girls’ education.
  • Locating schools closer to communities that are not currently served.
  • Recruitment of female teachers at the local level.
  • Providing in-service training to boost teachers’ skills.

Partners

Asociación Jóvenes Actores para el Desarrollo, National University of Equatorial Guinea, ONG-Inglesia Evangélica, Spanish Cooperation, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).

UNGEI within other national and international frameworks

Common Country Assessment/United Nations Development Assistance Framework (CCA/UNDAF) exists at the national level, and UNGEI’s strong focus on gender issues and girls’ education fits within this framework.