Educating Girls in Mauritania seen as Crucial for Development

Fatimetou Mint Babahmed, 20, is a founding member of the girl's club at the Lycee in Kaedi.

It is only 10 AM in the sun-bleached town of Kaedi, stranded like a beached ship in the advancing sands of the Sahara, but the temperature has already hit a withering 48 degrees C. (118 F). Sensibly, most people remain indoors during the midday hours. Those who must venture out go about their business like somnambulists.

In Kaedi, as in much of the rest of Sahelian Africa, an environmental tragedy quickly turned into a human one. Thirty years ago this region, in southern Mauritania near the border with Senegal, was wooded and watered. Now both are in short supply. With the trees removed for charcoal production and fuel wood, the soils unraveled into dust and the rivers and streams dried up. As the climate changed, farming became impossible and the region fell relentlessly into poverty. Faced with limited choices, families began to educate only boys, while girls were put to work as early as age 6.

Now, Kaedi is beginning to fight back. The deserted streets and general lassitude of the place belie the changes taking place inside its schools. The local high school (Lycee in French) is a hive of activity, especially for its girl students.

The library at the Lycee in Kaedi contains two computers, a printer and a photocopy machine all donated by UNFPA.

Sitting in a deserted classroom, twenty-year-old Fatimetou Mint Babahmed is busy preparing French lessons; it is her last year before graduating. Like most of the girls in this school, she comes from a poor family and is grateful to be able to finish high school. “I have been fortunate,” she explains in a clear voice. “Many of the girls in this town never got a chance to get an education. They are pulled out of primary school because they must help earn income for their families. Normally, it is the boys who stay in school and are educated.”

In Kaedi this is no longer the case. Girls are staying school longer, are literate and a much higher percentage graduate – 30% compared to the national average of 10%. Why?
The Lycee in Kaedi was included in an integrated pilot project implemented by UNFPA, WHO, UNICEF and UNDP, with funding made possible by a grant from the United Nations Foundation. The main focus of the project is to retain girls in middle and secondary schools long enough for them to acquire a fundamental education and develop skills (proficiency in French, computer use, mathematics. sciences and local languages, among others). It has energized this community and transformed the way local authorities view education.

Fatimetou (left) talks with two of her close friends during a break from classes at the Lycee in Kaedi.

Among other things the project established a library at the school, set up a computer room (with two computers) and founded a girls’ club. Fatimetou is a founding member of the girls’ club, an experience she describes as very rewarding. The club has launched a number of campaigns in the community to sensitize parents and students about reproductive health issues, including how to prevent HIV/AIDS and STIs (sexually transmitted infections) and the need to delay marriage and allow girls to finish secondary school.

Mauirtiania, like much of the rest of Sahelian Africa, has become desertified over the last three decades

“We use these campaigns as platforms to advocate for girls’ education and access to services. I am particularly proud of the work I have done to promote the rights of girls to education and to participate equally in community development,” says Fatimetou with a conspiratorial grin.

Promoting the education of girls in remote, isolated conservative communities in Mauritania was not an easy task. Girls like Fatimetou are routinely taken out of school, put to work and married early. This contributes to the continued feminization of poverty and ultimately hinders economic development.

“We cannot develop this country if only half the population, boys and men, are productive members of the community,” points out Elmounir Ould Mohamed Tolda, the distinguished-looking principal of the Lycee in Kaedi. “I was very happy when this school was selected as part of the pilot project. Educating girls is now on the increase in the entire country. This government is fully committed to fighting illiteracy and educating girls is the centerpiece of that policy,” he explains. “This project was instrumental in getting the government to support equal educational opportunities for girls.”

As for Fatimetou, she now intends to go on to the university. “Thanks to this project we were able to draw attention to health and social issues as well as the need to educate girls. Now I want to promote the education of girls nationwide,” she says firmly. “The motto of our club is: ‘Safety, Security and a Good Future’. But you cannot have that without an education. When I’m in the university next year, I want to fight for women’s rights. This is my goal now.”

Ends.