Millions of children and adults around the world lack the access to education for various reasons — some live in conflict zones, others aren’t allowed to attend school because they’re girls, or they don’t attend because their families need them to work and bring in income to support the family. But because education promotes the understanding of social justice, interdependence, and identity, it is key to eradicating global poverty by 2030. Here are nine facts you need to know about global education.
Around the world 59 million children of primary school age are being denied an education, and almost 65 million adolescents are without access to a secondary school.
Conflict and natural disasters have disrupted the education of 75 million children.
In one of three countries, less than three quarters of teachers are trained to national standards, resulting in 130 million children enrolled in school who are not even learning the basics.
A child whose mother can read is 50 percent more likely to survive past the age of 5.
Nearly 15 million girls of primary school age will never have the opportunity to learn to read and write in primary school, compared to about 10 million boys.
It would take $39 billion (USD) every year to send all adolescents to school.
In 2012, there were 168 million child labor workers aged 5 to 17. This is one reason many children cannot attend school.
Over 40 years, equitable access to quality education can help a country raise its gross domestic product per capita by 23 percent.
If all women had a primary education, there would be 1.7 million fewer malnourished children.
By taking action on Global Citizen, you will have a chance to win tickets to this year's Global Citizen Festival in New York City on Sept. 24, 2016. Learn more about the Global Citizen Festival here.