India's Bikes for Girls Program Brings Higher Literacy Rates
source: http://www.womensenews.org/story/education/110304/indias-bikes-girls-wheel-in-higher-literacy
-
-
- Womens_eNews
- added this
As part of a push to help its schoolgirls, India's Bihar state gives a bicycle to every one with good attendance who reaches eighth grade. Officials say this and other efforts have helped lower girls' drop-out numbers by 1.5 million in five years.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar launched the program knowing that many young women gave up their education for marriage or because it is unsafe for them to travel long distances alone on public transport.
A bicycle increases schoolgirls' mobility and the cost-free transportation to school reduces at least one major family expense in the impoverished state, where annual per capita income is around $300, well below the national average of around $800.
Since the start of the program the number of female dropouts has fallen to around 1 million from 2.5 million, state officials say.
Anjani Kumar Singh is principal secretary in the Bihar department that oversees education. He says the bicycle program joins a multifaceted push to advance schoolgirls.
"Bihar has a very low female literacy rate, low enrollment of girls, high drop-out rate. To close the gender gap in schools we took many initiatives like distributing free uniforms and a cycle. We also launched the Akshar Anchal campaign for literacy among women," he said. "All these interventions have yielded results. Today, we have more girls than boys in school; the enrolment of girls has increased three times in the last four years. We have also recruited more women teachers than men."
Read the full story on Women's eNews http://www.womensenews.org/story/education/110304/indias-bikes-girls-wheel-in-hi...
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar launched the program knowing that many young women gave up their education for marriage or because it is unsafe for them to travel long distances alone on public transport.
A bicycle increases schoolgirls' mobility and the cost-free transportation to school reduces at least one major family expense in the impoverished state, where annual per capita income is around $300, well below the national average of around $800.
Since the start of the program the number of female dropouts has fallen to around 1 million from 2.5 million, state officials say.
Anjani Kumar Singh is principal secretary in the Bihar department that oversees education. He says the bicycle program joins a multifaceted push to advance schoolgirls.
"Bihar has a very low female literacy rate, low enrollment of girls, high drop-out rate. To close the gender gap in schools we took many initiatives like distributing free uniforms and a cycle. We also launched the Akshar Anchal campaign for literacy among women," he said. "All these interventions have yielded results. Today, we have more girls than boys in school; the enrolment of girls has increased three times in the last four years. We have also recruited more women teachers than men."
Read the full story on Women's eNews http://www.womensenews.org/story/education/110304/indias-bikes-girls-wheel-in-hi...
