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First Lady for promotion of girls education

First Lady Monica Chakwera has emphasised the importance of promoting girls education, saying it could accelerate the country’s socio-economic growth.

She said this on Monday in Blantyre, Scotland during the Girl Child Partnership Meeting with officials from the Scotland-Malawi Partnership and other donor partners at the David Livingstone Museum.

Chakwera stresses a point at the Malawi Girl Child Partnership meeting

The meeting focused on the First Lady’s work through Shaping Our Future Foundation and the support she renders to education in the country.

Chakwera said her priorities and that of the Shaping Our Future Foundation is in relation to promotion of girl’s education.

She said: “While Malawi has made some gains in the area of education, enormous challenges remain which seriously hinder girls education in Malawi.

“That is the reason Shaping Our Future Foundation was established to complement government’s efforts in raising the profile of the girl child.”

Chakwera said the coronavirus pandemic has further exacerbated the challenges girls face including a rise in teenage pregnancies.

She also said the pandemic worsened the economic situation as some parents or guardians lost their sources of income to support girls to remain in school.

“This has put girls at the danger of sexual exploitation as they seek money for their school needs,” said Chakwera.

In his remarks Scotland-Malawi Partnership chief executive officer David Hope-Jones said the importance of the bilateral relations between Malawi and Scotland cannot be overemphasised.

He said: “Here at the Scotland-Malawi Partnership, we believe there is need of mutual respect and understanding to support girl’s education in Malawi.

“Malawi is like home to the people of Scotland, as highlighted by various national and international development agendas, access to education is a fundamental right and this education should go to the highest education status one can attain.”

Hope-Jones said it is his desire and dream to see many girls in Malawi attain and complete their education.

The First Lady has accompanied President Lazarus Chakwera to Glasgow, Scotland for the United Nations Conference of Parties on Climate Change CoP26 running from October 31 to November 12

The museum is located at the birth place of Scottish missionary David Livingstone in Blantyre which also shares a name with Malawi’s commercial capital.

Chakwera launched Shaping Our Future Foundation in October last year with the aim of promoting girls and street child education.

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