The theme for this year’s International Day of the Girl Child “Girls’ Vision for the Future” affirms that the girl child, like the boy child, has goals and aspirations she conceives and nurtures.
And like every child, she needs the spark that fuels her dreams and sets her vision in motion—quality education, good health, and strong cognitive, physical and emotional development—are what bring that vision to life.
Often, she gets little of these sparks for her vision.
Barriers, biases and other burdens limit her ability to thrive.
Girls face unique risks, violations, and vulnerabilities simply because of their gender. These challenges that closely impact their cognitive and physical growth diminish the quality and potential of their productivity.
While these remain the reality for girls in Nigeria, there is a glimmer of hope regarding their emancipation.
Before the cheer for that, wait for Nigeria’s standing compared with peers and global standards.
According to the World Bank’s Human Capital Index for females, a girl born in Nigeria before 2020 is expected to have a productivity of 36 per cent when she becomes an adult, compared to 34 per cent in 2018.
This means she is equipped to be 7.6 per cent more productive than she was estimated to be in 2018.
While the figure still remains below the numerical average of 50%, the few steps forward may signal progress.
The Human Capital Index (HCI) measures the human capital that a child born today can expect to attain by age 18, given the risks of poor health and poor education that prevail in the country where she lives. The HCI follows a person’s trajectory from birth to adulthood of a child born today.
A World Bank report perfectly captures the whole of the HCI in a clearer context:
“In the world’s poorest countries, there is a considerable risk that a girl may not survive to her fifth birthday. Even if she does reach school age, there’s still a chance she won’t start school at all, much less complete the standard 14 years of education from preschool to grade 12 that is common in wealthier nations. The time she spends in school may not effectively translate into learning, as it heavily depends on the quality of the teachers and schools she encounters. By the time she turns 18, she carries the enduring consequences of inadequate health and nutrition from childhood, which hinder her physical and cognitive abilities as an adult.”
Increased Female Productivity
An analysis of the five components that make up human capital shows that a girl in Nigeria is now expected to complete 10 years of schooling in 2020 compared to 7.6 years in 2018.
In terms of the actual quality of education, girls now acquire only 5 years worth of standard education in their 10 years of schooling, compared to only 3.9 years in 2018.
Also, the fraction of girls born in Nigeria who are not stunted and have a chance to survive till age 60 also increased by 11.6% and 1.27% respectively.
Whereas her chances of surviving till age 5 decreased by 2.5% and her performance in harmonised tests also declined by 4%.
When the privileges that girls enjoy are compared with the boy child, a girl born in Nigeria before 2020 is 2.98% more productive than her male peers. This increase is primarily seen in areas such as the quality of healthcare she receives covering the probability of her survival to age 5 and till age 60 and the fraction of girls under 5 who are not stunted.
However, in terms of both the quantity and quality of education, boys in Nigeria tend to have an upper hand compared to girls.
This disparity in educational access between girls and boys will later fuel deeper gender inequality, dimming the path for girls and stifling their dreams from reaching their full potential.
Years later, when she dares to lead, her vision trails behind that of boys and men who sometimes are not necessarily more qualified than her, yet the societal biases favouring men keep her potential in the shadows, holding her back and slowing her rise.
In Nigeria’s parliament, women’s representation in Nigeria’s parliament continues to be dominated by men. Not only has women’s share of the seats remained low, but it has also decreased over the past eight years.
Women constitute only 4.48% of the seats in the parliament in 2022 compared to 95.52% held by men.
Similarly, the gap between female and male participation in the labour force remains significant, although the number of women in Nigeria’s labour force has grown over years from 55% in 2015 to 77% in 2022.
Women face barriers to entering the labour market and achieving success within it. For girls, entering the workforce is often influenced by early marriage and the responsibilities of starting a family. Additionally, a gender gap in education restricts the occupational choices available to women.
Nigerian Girls and Others
Women and girls’ contributions to the national economy are gaining more recognition, but greater opportunities are still required for them to reach their full potential. Many women lack the necessary training and resources to thrive. To enhance their position, it is crucial to build their skills, strengthen their capacities, and expand opportunities for them to fully realise their roles in society.
When Nigeria is compared with her peers, a girl in Nigeria in 2020 is 2.4 points less productive than her age group in Sub-Saharan African countries.
She is expected to achieve only 37% of her full productivity potential when she grows up, compared to what she could attain with access to quality education and healthcare. This is below both the average for Sub-Saharan Africa (39%) and lower-middle-income countries like Nigeria (50%).
A girl child in Nigeria not only falls behind her male counterparts, but in some cases, she sometimes finds herself striving to keep pace with her likes in other Sub-Saharan African countries.
A girl who begins preschool at age 4 in Nigeria is expected to complete only 10 years of schooling by the time she turns 18, higher than the Sub-Saharan average but below the standard 14 years of schooling.
In terms of the actual quality of education, she receives a girl who completes 10 years of schooling by age 18 in Nigeria gains only the equivalent of 5 years of standard education.
Although this is higher than what a girl in an average Sub-Saharan African country access, it is less than the global average of 8 years and also below what girls in neighbouring Ghana and Gabon enjoy.