Girls' education

FHI 360’s programs help remove barriers to girls’ access to relevant, high-quality education. We facilitate the transition from primary to secondary school (a time when many girls drop out) and improve their academic achievement and completion rates.

In partnership with governments and nongovernmental organizations, we implement education programs that address a range of issues, including basic literacy and numeracy, leadership and mentoring, curriculum design, school planning, parental involvement to ensure sustainability, gender-sensitive teacher training, provision of scholarships and supplies, and construction of schools that accommodate girls’ privacy needs.

FHI 360 has had significant impact on girls' success in primary and secondary school by using a comprehensive model of complementary activities called the Four Pillars PLUS approach to girls’ education. Developed by FHI 360 staff through our long-term work in Africa and the Middle East, the Four Pillars are: mentoring for girls, scholarships for girls and boys, professional development and gender sensitivity training for teachers, and community participation in education.

The PLUS aspect of the approach includes additional activities that reflect the specific needs of each country and community. One FHI 360 program — the Ambassadors’ Girls’ Scholarship Program — provided scholarships and life-skills mentoring to girls and disadvantaged boys in 15 African countries. FHI 360 provided more than 215,000 scholarships to nearly 77,500 beneficiaries, 90 percent of whom were girls. The program worked with more than 1,500 schools and trained 1,400 mentors for girls.

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Girls' education