Photo Credit: AfDB Group
African Development Bank President, Akinwumi Adesina, honoured Mrs. Graça Machel as the first Kofi A. Annan Eminent Persons Speaker, which is a new name for the Bank’s African Development Institute’s Eminent Speaker Series. This took place during the 22nd Eminent Speakers’ Lecture of the African Development Institute in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire. Mrs Machel gave a special address titled: “Educating the Girl Child, Empowering Women, and Enhancing Female Entrepreneurship in Africa”.
Development experts, Abidjan-based diplomats, members of the Southern African community in Cote d’Ivoire, students from Ivorian secondary and tertiary institutions, members of different media agencies as well as African Development Bank members of staff took time to attend the event. Mrs. Machel reminded the audience about the 45 years that are remaining to achieve the goals that were set for Agenda 2063. She added that the 45 years is a lifespan of an entire generation of young girls that will grow to become active citizens whose potential must be unlocked. To ensure that we achieve the goals for our development by 2063 we need to fully invest in and optimize the continent’s other half which for too long has been neglected: the African female!”
“Africa’s socio-economic transformation will only be realized once we aggressively address gender-specific challenges, prioritize gender equality and women’s participation, and firmly entrench women in leadership positions at all levels in society.”
Mrs. Machel, in her capacity as a global advocate for women and children, emphasised on the importance of education since it changes the lives of people, especially girls, and is a catalyst for reducing child and maternal deaths and lifting people out of poverty. This is critical for sustainable development.
“Investing in education from early childhood has a lasting effect on the survival, development, protection, and active participation of children in social, economic and political activities. Knowing what we know, we must demand that governments fully meet their commitments to the investment in education.”
Education transforms the lives of individuals, communities and nations and is a prerequisite for sustainable development, Machel said, emphasizing that, “Education, particularly for girls, is a catalyst for reducing child and maternal deaths and lifting people out of poverty.”
Mrs. Machel also commended the African Development Bank on its amazing work and encouraged AfDB to use its power and influence to lobby governments and private sector partners to invest more in nutrition and Early Childhood Development. Resources should also be allocated to help build Africa’s human capital in order to impact change on the continent at the most fundamental of levels.
The Trust supports and mobilises civil society networks on issues of ending child marriage, ending violence against children, ending female genital mutilation and promoting children’s rights, to carry out advocacy and action across Africa. Special focus is placed on Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania and Zambia where child marriage continues to be a problem largely driven by poverty, gender inequality, harmful traditional practices, conflict, low levels of literacy, limited opportunities for girls and weak or non-existent protective and preventive legal frameworks.
Education is a fundamental right for all children, which is also a vehicle for social, economic and political transformation in communities, countries and the African continent at large. Recent studies indicate a lack of progress in some of the critical commitments aimed at improving education quality, access, retention and achievement, particularly for girls. In most African countries, girls may face barriers to learning, especially when they reach post-primary levels of education. By implementing multi-dimensional approaches to education which includes core education, personal development, life skills and economic competencies, the Trust partners with funding partners, governments, civil societies and the private sector to improve education access.
The Nutrition and Reproductive, Maternal, New-born, Child and Adolescent Health and Nutrition, (RMNCAH+N) of the Children’s Rights and Development Programme aims at promoting the Global Strategy for women, children and adolescents’ health within the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) agenda. The strategy emphasises on the importance of effective country leadership as a common factor across countries making progress in improving the health of women, children and adolescents.
Through its Early Childhood Development (ECD) plan, The Trust will seek to put into action the new science and evidence Report that was presented by Lancet Series on Good and early development – the right of every child. This will be achieved by mobilising like-minded partners to contribute in the new science and evidence to reach all young children with ECD. The Trust’s goal is to be a catalyst for doing things differently, in particular, to rid fragmentation and lack of coordination across ECD sectors. In response to evidence showing the importance of political will in turning the tide against the current poor access and quality of ECD. Even before conception, starting with a mother’s health and social economic conditions, the early years of a child’s life form a fundamental foundation that determines whether a child will survive and thrive optimally.