More girls get more primary schooling in Niger

Plan is working to reduce and eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary education. This means getting more girls into school and enabling them to stay there longer. Plan also aims to ensure that all boys and girls complete their primary schooling.  

Parents are encouraged to send their girls to school, rather than keeping them home doing chores, by raising awareness among the parents about the benefits of giving girls an education and recognizing academically successful girls by awarding certificates. Plan also holds an annual girls’ education festival in the villages and in Dosso.

Plan aims to improve the quality of girls' education while ensuring the environment is welcoming and safe. Plan trains teachers on gender sensitivity to reduce sexism and cut gender bias and help ensure the girls’ physical safety, and works on the curriculum by including practical elements like gardening into the curriculum, as well as extracurricular activities like volleyball that enhance girls’ self-esteem. And gender-specific latrines increase girls’ confidence and comfort.

Plan campaigns too. In July 2004, Plan Niger sponsored a national girls’ education conference to raise awareness about the importance of sending girls to school, as well as strategies for ensuring their academic success. Some progress has already been made. In the three years since Plan Niger’s 2001 study, the percentage of girls in elementary school has jumped from 25 to 42 percent.