Of the one billion people worldwide who are unable to read, 2/3 are women. In most societies, girls are given less chance to complete their schooling. If money for school fees is short, priority will nearly always go to boys. Parents reason that boys are more likely to find work and continue working than girls, who expected to marry and have children.
However, surveys have shown that in fact it is the mother’s education rather than the father’s that has the greater long –term effect both on her own health and that of her family. Research shows that educated mothers are more likely and that to return to the clinic if their children’s health does not improve. Educated women tend to have fewer, healthier children. They also tend to begin their families at a later age. Researchers for the United Nations, studing 46 countries, found that a 1٪ rise in women’s literacy is three times more likely to reduce deaths in children than a 1٪ rise in the number of doctors. They also found that four to six years of education for women led to a 20٪ drop in infant deaths.
Literacy programs can therefore have for reaching effects on health. If women are given access to literacy and better education, they will be able to make their own choices.
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