About us
We believe all women can embrace who they are,
can define their future, and can change the world.
Educate Girls
Gift them a bright future
Education is a fundamental right for all children, but girls from impoverished, illiterate families are mostly denied this right in Africa and Globally. By the time they reach adolescence, 60% are out of school and kept at home doing household chores.
Reasons like gender discrimination, lack of menstrual healthcare, and early marriage lead to girls in rural and poor families, who prefer educating their sons for financial reasons, dropping out of school. This is why 60% are out of school by the time they reach adolescence, doing household chores instead of preparing for further studies and gainful employment. An educated girl benefits society, as she is more likely to make sure her children, including daughters, are schooled. This affects many development indices, including health and economic progress.
Justice and Inequality
Inequity and injustice prevail when children are denied their fundamental right to an education
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A girl excluded from school becomes a woman excluded from all sectors of society. She has no choice or says over her own body, her future, or her family's future. She is excluded from participating in professions or decision-making bodies that affect her life, well-being, and society.
Championing Equity and Social Justice
UGAP works with partners and communities to level the playing field and ensure women and girls can reach their full potential.
For girls, often the intersection of multiple issues creates inequitable early life experiences. For example, growing up in a low-income country + being a girl + being rural + being the eldest sibling can equate to a significant level of inequity in girls' life experiences and chances.
Girls’ education is at the heart of sustainable development
An educated girl knows how to access information and services. She has a say in what matters to her, her family, and her community. Girls’ education also opens the door to economic opportunities, women’s leadership in business, the public and private sectors, and climate justice. It is at the heart of sustainable development and leads to positive, lasting change for everyone.
When girls are educated, everyone wins
Girls with access to quality education gain decision-making power, can join the workforce, and invest in their families education, health, and well-being. Their financial and social philanthropy creates a Multiplier Effect - the exponential impact of girls' education on others' lives.
By educating girls and supporting young women in independence and leadership, we are igniting a movement of experts in delivering social justice. They have an intimate understanding of the challenges girls and young women in their communities face and work with schools, parents, and local and national government officials to devise solutions, building an ecosystem of support around vulnerable children.
As those once excluded from education take up positions of influence in their communities, they are demonstrating the value of education and inspiring a societal shift towards the fairer distribution of opportunity and resources.
Through girls’ education and women’s leadership, we are tackling poverty and all the resulting and interconnected injustices, such as:
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Exclusion from education
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Gender inequity
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Gender-based violence
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Child marriage
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Teenage pregnancy
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Hunger and malnutrition
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HIV/AIDS and malaria
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Unemployment